The Adventures of a True Immortal in DxD
by The Fengo
Summary: For millennia the Three Factions have fought in the Great War to the point of near extinction. In one final battle the Biblical God and the Four Great Satans were supposed to fight to the death and with their deaths bring an end to the Great War. Well, that's what would have happened, if it wasn't for one person showing up in exactly the right place, at exactly the right time.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own** _ **High School DxD**_

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Underneath a purple, sunless sky three armies could be seen facing each other. Although they weren't fighting at the moment, the situation gave off the kind of feeling that if even one person made the wrong move they would go right back to killing each other all over again.

The ground, scorched and marked with craters, was a testament to the fierce battle that had occurred there not long ago. The corpses of various beings were strewn throughout the battlefield but they were ignored by those who were still alive. Their attention was focused towards the center of the battlefield where a tense standoff between the most powerful beings in the war was happening.

Just moments before, the Three Factions were fighting it out with each other in the fiercest battle yet to take place during the Great War. However, right now they were observing each other during a lull in the fighting and were preparing to do battle once more. In such a tense situation where a single move from any side would provide the spark to reignite the battle, all of the attention was being focused upon the leaders of the factions who were in the center of it all.

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The Three Factions were once considered to be the mightiest powers in the world. Countless years of fighting in the Great War, however, had reduced them to mere shadows of their former selves.

The first faction consisted of the Angels who were led by the Biblical God and his Seraphim.

The second faction consisted of the Devils who were commanded by the Four Great Satans: Lucifer, Beelzebub, Leviathan, and Asmodeus.

And the third faction consisted of the Fallen Angels and their organization called the Grigori, which was governed by Azazel.

Although the Three Factions originally had a strong mutual dislike for each other, it had never reached the point of open conflict until the start of the Great War.

The Great War swept up all Three Factions into a never-ending cycle of slaughter and destruction that had absolutely no end in sight. They were forced into a situation where they had to kill or be killed and to show weakness for even a single moment was to invite death. With no other choice, the Three Factions were compelled to keep fighting with only mutually assured destruction as their fate.

And so they fought. For decades, and then for centuries, they fought with no other thought than to annihilate their enemies. In such bleak circumstances, to expect anything but a tragic ending and despair from the current situation would be absurd. There would be no peace, no reprieve, and no mercy. The end would only come when all sides were completely obliterated; devastated to the extent that they lose the will to fight any longer.

...Well, that's how the Great War _should_ have ended, anyways.

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The center of the battlefield was dominated by an oppressive silence as the strongest of each of the Three Factions looked out at each other and gauged the strength of their opponents. Although they had engaged in a fierce fight just moments before, that was merely an opening skirmish between them to gather information for the true battle that lay ahead.

Glowing with a radiant light was the Biblical God, along with his trusted Seraphim who were standing a little ways behind him. He looked over at the leaders of the other factions with a stoic face but on the inside he sighed wearily as he thought about the current situation.

He never imagined that the relationship between the Three Factions could have deteriorated so quickly and so terribly and truly underestimated the consequences of such a war between them.

By the time he realized it the situation was already beyond salvaging and had devolved into a brutal fight for survival between the Three Factions.

 _How long has it been?_ He wondered as he prepared himself for the fiercest fight of his life. It was hard for him to remember the relatively peaceful times before the Great War, and it only became increasingly difficult to recall as the decades passed.

 _How many have died?_ He thought to himself as he looked around at the various beings that surrounded him and the others.

Behind him, of course, were the Seraphim, his most powerful and trusted Angels. Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael, Metatron, Sandalphon, Raguel, Raziel, Sariel, and Remiel. By some miracle they had each survived thus far in the Great War and he was immensely thankful of that fact.

Further behind them were the rest of his children. Floating in the air, a far distance away, were countless Angels of varying ranks and positions who knew better than to come near the veritable powerhouses that were just a hairsbreadth away from clashing. Although they dearly wanted to help their Father in the coming clash they knew that they would only be a hindrance at best. The fight ahead would be a place where only the strongest belonged and there was no room for those without enough power.

Ahead and to his left he spotted the Four Great Satans, each one of them observing the battlefield with sharp eyes. For a moment all four pairs of their eyes fell onto him. He stared back and they broke off their gazes to look elsewhere. Behind them were the Devil hordes, also flying in the air far away from the battlefield.

Then, as he moved his gaze ahead and to his right, he felt a brief pang of sadness as he looked upon his _other_ children. The Fallen Angels were one of his greatest regrets, having fallen from his grace. As he looked upon the leaders of the Grigori, he thought back to the time when they fell; the disappointment, anger, and shame that he had felt when he learned that they had been tempted by humans. The leaders were Azazel, Shemhazai, Baraqiel, Kokabiel, Armaros, Sahariel, Penemue, and Tamiel. As he looked sadly at them they noticed his gaze and he looked away. Flying above and behind them were the legions of Fallen Angels, all of whom had accompanied the leaders of Grigori and chosen to follow them.

He inwardly sighed again as he checked his condition in preparation for the battle ahead.

 _I still haven't fully recovered from sealing away Trihexa._ He thought as he frowned internally.

 _Ugh._ He shivered as he thought back to how he sealed away the Apocalyptic Beast.

At first he was skeptical that Trihexa even existed. It was rumored to be as strong as Great Red, the Dragon of Dragons, the strongest being in the world and therefore immensely dangerous. He was shocked and terrified when he confirmed that Trihexa actually existed and immediately came up with the idea to seal it away, seeing as it was much too powerful to do anything else. He somehow managed to catch Trihexa by surprise, and even then he barely survived the process of placing thousands of seals on it. He emerged victorious but he was injured and exhausted most of his power in the process.

 _I have no choice._ He thought. _Retreat is not an option. And should I fall here today..._

He looked towards his side at one of his Seraphim, Michael, who had stepped forward to give a fearless glare towards the other combatants.

"Are you nervous, Michael?" He asked quietly, moving his gaze back towards the battlefield.

Michael instantly replied. "Of course not, Father. With you here along with my brothers and sisters there is no chance of us tasting defeat this day."

The Biblical God chuckled at Michael's predictable answer but inwardly thought that this day would probably be his last.

"Would you please listen to my request, Michael?"

"Of course Father. Anything you wish."

"If I do not survive this battle, I want you to take over as leader of Heaven."

He could hear Michael take a sharp intake of breath and gasps coming from the Seraphim behind him as they heard his request.

"...Don't be ridiculous, Father. There will be no need for me to fulfill that request because you will definitely survive this battle."

He knew that Michael was angry that he had even brought up the request, but insisted on it nevertheless.

Looking at Michael directly in his eyes he repeated himself. "I am not invincible Michael, so I need you to promise me to look after Heaven if I do not make it."

Michael was about to respond when he saw the look in his Father's eyes. It was a look of fierce determination and it silenced any words that were about to come out of his mouth.

After a brief silence Michael answered him. "...I promise, Father."

The Biblical God gave his son a relieved smile as he thanked him and turned back to face his enemies.

Although he resigned himself to dying in battle this day, he was determined to take as many of his enemies down with him. Hopefully with his and the other leaders' deaths, the Three Factions would finally bring an end to the Great War.

He prepared himself for battle, shifting his stance and gathering his power.

The Four Great Satans and the Grigori leaders did the same as the tension skyrocketed; each of them waiting for an unknown signal to start the battle that would decide the outcome of the Great War.

The members of the Three Factions surrounding their leaders held their breath as they waited to see who would make the first move.

Tensing their bodies, the leaders of the Three Factions prepared to attack, about to make history in a battle that ended the Great War along with the lives of the Four Great Satans and the Biblical God—

But they were interrupted when a blue portal suddenly materialized dead center between each of the leaders.

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The leaders of the Three Factions were all taken aback as they stared with wide eyes at the portal that swirled and hummed with energy. Their confusion only grew further when they confirmed that the other leaders were as surprised as they were, meaning that none of them had expected this to happen.

As the leaders continued to look at the portal, murmurs broke out among the Angels, Devils, and Fallen Angels surrounding them as they also tried to figure out what was happening. Even the leaders themselves began to whisper amongst one other as they tried to analyze the baffling event.

However, the attention of every single being within that battlefield snapped back to the portal when a hand shot out of it and gripped the edge of the portal.

Everyone watched transfixed as a man walked out of the portal, with it slowly fading from existence shortly afterwards.

Surprisingly enough, the man appeared to be a human somewhere in his twenties. He stood at a fairly tall height and had the brightest crimson-colored hair that any of them had ever seen. It reached down to the back of his neck, with his bangs covering his forehead and running down the sides of his head to his cheeks. His eyes were a striking shade of blue, like sapphires which sparkled in the light. Equally as eye-catching as his hair and eyes was the smile on his face. It was so natural and genuine, that it gave everyone the impression that it belonged there; the feeling that to see anything else _but_ a smile would be unnatural.

However, as he exited the portal his smile changed to an expression of surprise as he looked around at the numerous supernatural beings that he found were surrounding him.

He took a closer look around at the situation he found himself in, taking in the tense and volatile atmosphere and the craters and bodies that dotted the landscape.

Apparently coming to some kind of a conclusion, his face gained a sheepish-looking smile as he asked a question that wasn't particularly directed at anybody.

"Am I interrupting something?"

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"Am I interrupting something?"

They all stared back in befuddlement at the human who had just interrupted the start to the most important battle in the Great War.

Compared to their subordinates' thoughts, the leaders who were closest to the man were cautious and on high alert. When they inspected him closely they couldn't feel a trace of any power, or aura, or anything coming from him, which immediately set off alarm bells in their heads. This person just exited a portal that opened up in the middle of the fiercest battle to take place in the Great War, in the _Underworld_ , no less, and they couldn't sense a single thing from him? That they couldn't sense anything from him could probably be attributed to the fact that he was a human—a fact that opens up a whole other can of worms—but the way the man was acting, even after seeing the scarred battlefield and the powerful beings surrounding him, made all of the leaders highly suspicious of this individual.

Possessing the highest amount of curiosity among any of them, Azazel spoke up first, ending the silence that was caused by the appearance of the man by asking him a question. "Who are you?"

Turning around to face the person who asked him the question, the man regained his smile as he answered it. "My name's Fengo. What's your name?"

Smiling amusedly at his simple and honest response, Azazel responded in kind. "I'm Azazel."

"It's nice to meet you, Azazel."

"Likewise, Fengo."

The casual conversation between the two of them, which was occurring right in front of all of the leaders, garnered various reactions from all of them.

The other Fallen Angel leaders looked at Azazel with a small amount of frustration, but mostly resignation, as they sighed in unison. Something like this wasn't surprising at all when it came to him and his curiosity about things which caught his interest. When this man, Fengo, appeared out of nowhere, Azazel immediately entered a state where he focused all of his attention on discovering who he was, ignoring everything else around him. When Azazel was in this state there wasn't anything that could interrupt him and he would put aside anything, even the most important battle of the Great War, to satisfy his curiosity. This was hardly the first time they had seen him like this; in fact they had seen it so many times that they were more or less used to it by now.

The Biblical God and his Seraphim were in the same boat as the Fallen Angel leaders, having known him before his fall from grace. They remembered that even when he was still an Angel of Heaven his curiosity was unmatched by anyone else. In his time as a Fallen Angel it seemed as if his curiosity only grew as evidenced by his willingness to put aside the battle for the sake of finding out more about this man. While thinking about all of this, the Biblical God was looking at Azazel with a wry smile on his face, like he always did. Gabriel was giggling at his antics, like she always did, and Michael was looking at him with a distasteful frown—like he always did.

On the other side of the battlefield, the Four Great Satans were looking a little nonplussed. Although they knew who Azazel was, they were never as close to him as the others were so they were completely taken aback at his sudden change in behavior. Once they got over their initial surprise though, they each reacted in their own different ways. Leviathan had a wide smile on her face as she looked at the scene with an amused and mischievous glint in her eyes. Asmodeus looked confused about the situation, which wasn't really a surprise at all, but he also seemed to be inexplicably excited at the thought of fighting the man who had shown up out of nowhere. Beelzebub, once he had calmed down, went back to analyzing the current situation that he and his closest friends now found themselves in. Lucifer, however, was sporting a tick mark on his forehead, revealing how angry he was at what was happening. Those two in front him had the gall to converse so casually and completely ignore him at the same time? Completely unacceptable!

Lucifer tried to assert his presence by speaking out. "Either you are very brave, or very foolish, human—"

"So mind telling me what's going on around here Azazel?"

But he was interrupted when Fengo asked his question.

"How dare you interrupt m—"

"Well," Lucifer, now becoming angry, tried to insert himself into the conversation but was once again ignored. "Some other guys and I were about to clash in an epic battle for the ages that would have likely determined the outcome of the Great War and probably resulted in most of our deaths." Azazel paused to take a breath. "When you appeared out of thin air, literally, and interrupted us."

By this point Lucifer's face was looking quite apocalyptic. It was now an angry shade of red which, when accompanied by a twitching eye and the tic mark, made for quite the terrifying visage.

Just when he was about ready to attack the two out of sheer frustration he heard giggling and snickering coming from beside him. Whipping his head over to look at the offenders, he found himself glaring at Leviathan and Asmodeus who weren't even trying to hide their mirth at the state that he was in. Keeping up his glare, the two eventually tried stifling their laughter, though they had a hard time doing it and were obviously still amused. Beelzebub just rolled his eyes at his friends' behaviors when he saw them looking at him, clearly accustomed to their antics by now.

Thanks to his fellows Satans and friends Lucifer was able to calm down. Crossing his arms petulantly he decided he would graciously allow the two to continue with their conversation.

"Huh. Really. No kidding?" Fengo showed no shock or surprise to Azazel's answer; rather, he seemed pretty blasé about the whole thing.

"Yeah, no joke. I'm being totally serious right now."

While Azazel was talking with Fengo, he was also observing him carefully and paying close attention to his reactions because he was interested in how Fengo would take this revelation. It wasn't every day that information like this was divulged, after all, and doing so might reveal some more insight on Fengo depending on how he would respond to it.

It was only because Azazel had been carefully watching Fengo that he was able to catch the minute changes in his countenance, which he would have otherwise missed completely because of how quickly Fengo managed to conceal them.

For just a moment Fengo's smile turned bitter; his eyes seemed weary and resigned and his shoulders slumped ever so slightly. However, before Azazel even had a chance to blink, all the changes he had just observed vanished, replaced with determination and a look of resolve, and it was only because he had been intently focusing on Fengo that he didn't play it off as a trick of his eyes.

Azazel stored that piece of information away in his mind for a later time, deciding not to comment on it, and instead asked Fengo another question. "So what about you, Fengo?"

"Hm? What about me?"

"How about starting with how you got here and why you decided to interrupt us?"

"I arrived here by walking through a portal." Everyone who heard his answer just stared at him blankly.

Grinning, Fengo continued without missing a beat.

"And I wasn't planning on interrupting you; it just happened to turn out that way. What a coincidence, huh?"

No one there believed him when he said that it was just a coincidence, the look on his face only fueling their suspicions.

Skeptical of Fengo's response, Azazel decided to call him out on it. "So your appearance in the middle of the most important fight of the most important battle of the most important _war_ of our _lives_ was just a 'coincidence'?"

Fengo's grin only grew wider as Azazel spoke disbelievingly.

"Yup." Fengo answered, casually popping the 'p' at the end of the word.

Azazel took a long look at Fengo but was unsettled when he found that he couldn't determine one way or the other if he was lying to them or not. As the leader of the Fallen Angels, Azazel considered himself to be one of the best judges of character and manipulators in the Three Factions and frequently put those skills to use during the war to devastating effect. This only made the fact that he couldn't get a read on Fengo, apparently just a human, that much more disconcerting.

An awkward silence followed Fengo's response as everyone mulled over his answer and exchange with Azazel.

Finally the Biblical God spoke up, breaking the silence.

"Whatever the case may be, it would be best for you to leave, my child." The Biblical God said in a solemn tone, advising the young human.

Both Fengo and Azazel paused for a moment, before simultaneously turning to face the Biblical God.

Both parties stared at each other unblinkingly before Fengo glanced over at Azazel.

"Hey, Azzy, was he talking to you or me?"

"'Azzy'?" He parroted back towards Fengo, looking at him strangely.

Fengo beamed at Azazel as he said, "Mhm. Azazel is a pretty nice name, but 'Azzy' rolls off the tongue, yeah?"

Azazel was about to disagree, but after he saw how pleased Fengo was he sighed and decided to just let it go.

"By the way, he was talking to you, Fengo."

Fengo turned to face the Biblical God who spoke again after patiently waiting for the two to finish. "As I said before, you should leave before you get hurt. This is no place for a human such as you, my child."

"Ah, please, just call me Fengo. Also, thanks for the concern, but I can take care of myself just fine."

The Biblical God scrutinized the human who called himself Fengo as he listened to his audacious claim. He wasn't boastful about it, nor did he seem to be putting on a brave front for the sake of those who were watching him. Even though he was surrounded by beings with power that defied comprehension, Fengo was calm and his statement was delivered with what he would describe as "confident certainty". The Biblical God didn't know what to make of him, so he tried one last time to persuade him to leave.

"You will be caught up in the fighting once it begins so, for your own sake, Fengo, _please_ leave while you still have the chance." The Biblical God pleaded to him, trying his best to save one last human before his end.

Everyone there was stunned to see the Biblical God so determined to save this one human, to the point where he was practically begging him to live. Most of them couldn't understand his desire to save human lives and to see them prosper. This was especially true of his Seraphim who were baffled and angered that their Father would lower himself to such a degree just to see this human live.

Fengo didn't respond and instead studied the Biblical God in silence, seeming to be searching for something in him.

When the Biblical God felt Fengo's gaze on him he stiffened for reasons unknown to him. It was as if Fengo could see through his entire being and he felt as if he was being analyzed and judged under Fengo's eyes. Above all else, however, was the overwhelming feeling of pure _unease_ that Fengo was inciting within him through such a mundane action.

After what seemed like an eternity, Fengo finally shifted his gaze away after apparently finding what he had been looking for. This caused the Biblical God to loosen up almost involuntarily, as if in relief. Wondering exactly what had just happened, the Biblical God watched on as Fengo surveyed the other leaders. To his disbelief, he saw _every single one of them_ flinch as Fengo's eyes landed on them one by one. The entire process was surreal to see and confirmed the Biblical God's suspicion that there was more to Fengo than any of them had originally assumed.

After Fengo's gaze returned to him the Biblical God listened to the words that followed, no longer treating him as carelessly as he did before.

"If I leave, you guys will just go back to fighting each other, right?"

The Biblical God was slightly taken aback at Fengo's question but answered it with a hardened expression on his face. "We will. There is no other choice if we are to survive and everyone here has resolved themselves for it. One way or another, this detestable war _will_ end today."

His last statement was delivered with a tone of finality that had not only his Seraphim looking at him alarmingly but the other leaders as well.

However, as if expecting it, Fengo showed no reaction as he continued to ask the Biblical God further questions. "Have you truly never considered any other options? In your eyes is fighting in a war you despise the only way out?"

"What are you trying to say?" The Biblical God said, beginning to anger. "We have fought this war for _centuries_ , we have lost _thousands_ and—!"

" _And you think that you are the only ones who have suffered?_ "

Before the Biblical God could continue, Fengo interrupted him with a question that pierced him to the very core of his being. The Biblical God was shocked into silence but Fengo continued on.

"There appears to be two other sides in this war, you know? They have fought for just as long as you have; they have lost just as many as you have, and yet you never once thought that they would want this war to end as well?"

This time addressing the other leaders as well he asked, "Have _any_ of you ever once stopped to think that _none of you_ wanted this war to continue?"

In the stillness that followed Fengo's questions the leaders of the Three Factions took the opportunity to gauge each other's reactions. The masks that each of the leaders crafted over the course of the war to hide their emotions were slowly starting to slip off in the current situation, and what they revealed surprised them all.

Regret. Exhaustion. Bitterness. Hopelessness. Showing none of the emotions of typical warmongers and all of the emotions of leaders with lifetimes' worth of regrets, not a single leader there presented a front which advocated for the perpetuation of the war. Seeing their fellow leaders express feelings which mirrored their own made Fengo's statement about none of them wanting to continue the war that much more believable. This revelation combined with the myriad of events which had occurred that day left them ill-prepared for what came next.

"So," Fengo said, drawing the attention back to him. Looking at his face they could see a large smile which only seemed to grow with his next words. "Now that it's clear that no one wants to fight any longer..." At this point his smile was positively cat-like.

"How about you guys end the Great War?"

For the faction leaders who had already had a hell of day, this suggestion from Fengo was simply too much and their jaws were left hanging in shock.

Meanwhile, Fengo was content to just watch them with the same mischievous smile on his face as their brains attempted to reboot and make sense of what he had just suggested.

After yet another lengthy silence, Lucifer was the first one to regain his state of mind and to respond to Fengo. "Human, do you not understand the absurdity of what you have just suggested?"

Tilting his head, Fengo countered Lucifer's dazed reply. "Is it really? Not only have you guys conveniently gathered together in one place, but you've also all seen that none of you have any desire to continue fighting. From where I'm standing, there is no better chance to end the Great War than right now."

Lucifer paused at that, and after thinking it over had to grudgingly agree with what the human had pointed out.

This time, Azazel, who had had a wide smile on his face ever since recovering from Fengo's casual proposal to end the Great War, said, "So what are you proposing? That the Three Factions just make peace?"

"No, no, no." Fengo denied, waving his hands about. "Expecting that of the Three Factions would be a little too much to ask too soon. I think that 'making peace' after you guys have been killing each other for so long would just be a recipe for disaster."

Azazel let out a bitter smile after hearing that, finding that he had to agree with Fengo's reasoning.

"Buuut..." Fengo said with a grin. "A ceasefire wouldn't be too much to ask for, would it?"

All of the leaders mulled over that proposal, thinking it over in their heads.

Even though they were all tired of the Great War, attempting to negotiate for peace between the Three Factions would not be a wise decision at this point in time. Besides their own thoughts, they also had to take into account the thoughts of their own people who were as much a part of the Great War as they were. Suddenly announcing to them that the Great War was over would be a big enough shock to them on its own, but calling for peace between factions that had been fighting for as long as they have? At best their people would believe that it was a trick their leaders were playing on them. At worst the lingering feelings from the Great War would lead to outrage over the peace and then to another war.

However, a ceasefire could be the solution to their problems. If all Three Factions could show to each other that none of them had any desire to continue fighting any longer, bringing up the idea of a peace treaty between them wouldn't sound as farfetched anymore. The ceasefire would also bring an end to all current fighting between the Three Factions, if nothing else, and possibly create opportunities for them to interact with one another in a way other than attacking and trying to kill each other on sight. Through those interactions they could possibly come to more of an understanding with one another; enough of an understanding to the point where peace would be seen as a possibility and maybe even as desirable.

Well, that would be the hope at least. Whether or not it will actually turn out that way remains to be seen.

The idea of a ceasefire was an attractive one that they all thought was feasible. But they could see that it also carried with it a great deal of risk which could lead to the destruction of their faction if they were careless. One of them being they would have to trust that the other factions would not try and use this opportunity to attack them while their guard was down to annihilate them. Another issue would be in the communications between the Three Factions in order to facilitate negotiations and talks among other things.

Bringing these complications up, the Biblical God spoke out to Fengo. "Although the idea of a ceasefire is appealing and preferable, there are many ways in which it could be derailed. To achieve a ceasefire between the Three Factions would be a monumental undertaking."

"You're right. But isn't it worth it to at least try to achieve a better future, no matter how difficult it might be?"

On that point the leaders could all agree.

"And besides, I'll help out and make sure that it definitely succeeds." He said with a bright smile, in a tone full of certainty.

And on this point the leaders all looked at Fengo strangely.

The nonchalant way in which he said that made it seem like it was natural for him to aid in negotiating a ceasefire between three immensely powerful supernatural factions who had been warring for centuries and the confidence he spoke with made it seem like success was already a foregone conclusion.

In the stillness that followed Fengo's declaration, the faction leaders all continued to look at him with the same odd expression on their faces, as if they had just heard something utterly ridiculous. Which, in fact, they had, although the man himself apparently didn't think so.

Eventually, as the silence dragged on and it became evident that Fengo was in fact serious about what he had just said, the Biblical God spoke up disbelievingly. "Are you saying that you will personally aid in the process?"

"But of course." Fengo affirmed. "Since I was the one who interrupted your glorious battle to the death and suggested ending the Great War in the first place, I insist that I also take responsibility for my actions."

"You seem pretty confident that it'll all work out, but how would you even contribute, Fengo?" Azazel asked, thoroughly entertained by now.

"Well, first off, I could be the middle-man, acting as an intermediary between the Three Factions. Since I've just arrived here, I have no affiliations whatsoever to any group or faction and would be unbiased in any negotiations."

Listening to Fengo the leaders all agreed in their head that he made a good point. In the future it would be beneficial to have a neutral party through which they could communicate with the other factions. This would help in eliminating some of the problems that would arise when they would begin to negotiate with each other.

"Most importantly, though, would be my task of keeping the peace between the Three Factions and making sure the Great War doesn't start up all over again. That will be crucial." Fengo said decisively, crossing his arms and nodding his head.

Yet again the leaders all looked at Fengo strangely.

Struck with a case of déjà vu, the faction leaders all continued to look at him with the same odd expression on their faces, as if they had just heard something utterly ridiculous. Which, in fact, they had, although the man himself apparently didn't think so.

This time however, instead of a lull in which the leaders tried to process his statement, Lucifer immediately burst out laughing.

As his mocking laughter rang out across the battlefield, the Biblical God frowned while the most intense look of interest yet had appeared on Azazel's face.

Fengo just gave an amused smile towards Lucifer as he waited for him to calm down.

"Human," Lucifer said, highly amused. "I must praise you for giving me the first good laugh I've had in a while." He smiled derisively. "The thought of a mere _human_ like you 'keeping the peace' between the Three Factions is the most entertaining thing I have heard in a long time."

"I think that I'm pretty capable for a human, though." Fengo responded with a mysterious smile.

Sneering, Lucifer disparaged Fengo's remark. "You can think whatever you want. But it won't change the fact that you're just a weak human who will soon discover that he is utterly outclassed within the world of the supernatural." Lucifer derided. "When compared to the likes of us humans are only insects to be trampled on."

Although they would have stated it differently, the other leaders agreed with Lucifer's notion that Fengo was being presumptuous when he declared his intent to maintain order between the Three Factions. Even leaving aside the matter that Fengo was just a human, for _any_ being to make an announcement as audacious as his was just absurd.

Looking around at the other leaders Fengo scratched the back of his head as he spoke to them. "It seems like you're all in agreement with him, huh?"

"Well, it's not like I don't understand why..." He said quietly to himself. "And this is as good a time as any I guess..." As Fengo mumbled to himself, Lucifer took that as a sign that Fengo was reflecting on the statement that he made.

Scoffing, Lucifer said, "Have you finally seen the foolishness of—"

"So," Fengo interrupted by clapping his hands together, cutting off Lucifer yet again and causing him to twitch. "Why don't I just demonstrate for all of you, then?"

"What are you possibly talking about now, human?" Lucifer asked incredulously.

Ignoring him completely, Fengo instead addressed Asmodeus, pointing at him. "Hey, you."

"How dare you ignore me?!" Lucifer was outraged at being casually dismissed by Fengo—which Asmodeus also overlooked just as easily as Fengo had ignored Lucifer.

"Me?" He inquired, pointing to himself.

While Lucifer was taking deep breaths and trying to calm himself down in order to avoid strangling his friend, Fengo confirmed Asmodeus' question.

"Yeah. You seem like a pretty strong guy and some sort of leader or something."

"I guess you could call me that." Asmodeus said simply.

"You also look like you're bored out of your mind right now and you've wanted to fight me ever since I showed up, right?"

Giving a challenging smile, Asmodeus answered him. "What about it?"

"That's perfect then." Fengo responded by giving Asmodeus a challenging smile of his own. "I'll use you as proof; come at me with all that you have."

While the other leaders gaped in shock at Fengo's latest declaration, Asmodeus only smiled wider as excitement began to bubble within him.

"Did I hear you correctly? You want to fight?" Even as he was saying this tremendous magical power was already being gathered by him in preparation.

"Yeah, it's simple. After I beat you, there shouldn't be any questioning of my power anymore." Fengo replied.

The Biblical God was alarmed by the recent development and tried to intervene. "You can't Fengo! He's too—!"

"Hahahaha!" Asmodeus interrupted him when he suddenly laughed.

At the same time that he did so there was a massive explosion of demonic power as magical energy spilled from Asmodeus. It chaotically swirled around him causing the ground to shake and fracture from the sheer volume and density of it. Then it started to coalesce around him, forming itself into a sort of aura that surrounded him in a dense layer of energy that flowed over his entire body.

"'After' you beat me huh?" He said with a broad smile.

"I like the way you think, Fengo! My name is Asmodeus!" Declaring this to Fengo, Asmodeus readied himself.

Fengo raised an eyebrow, looking intrigued when Asmodeus displayed his power. But when he heard Asmodeus' response Fengo acknowledged it with a smile of his own.

Beelzebub tried to stop his friend. "Asmodeus wai—!"

But he failed as Asmodeus shouted at Fengo. "Here I come!"

Cratering the ground where he once stood, Asmodeus shot off towards Fengo. He flew along the ground at such high speeds that he seemed to all but disappear to those who were watching, reappearing right in front of Fengo. His arm was pulled back and his fist was glowing with all of the energy that he had focused there.

Twisting his body, he rotated his arm and threw his fist towards Fengo. There was an explosion of energy as the land was rocked by Asmodeus' powerful attack impacting Fengo head on, kicking up dust as the ground was shattered.

The other leaders could only watch on numbly as his body was sent flying across the battlefield; there was absolutely nothing they could have done in that situation.

It was all over in an instant.

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The Devil known as "Asmodeus" was an interesting existence, to say the least.

Asmodeus was one of the Four Great Satans: the rulers of the Underworld and the leaders of the Devils. As befitting of a Devil holding one of the four greatest positions in the Devil race, he possessed peerless strength which was recognized both by his own kind and by his enemies. This was shown through the various informal titles he received: "The Dogged Devil" and "The Juggernaut" being a couple of them.

However, as a Great Satan—rather, as a _Devil_ —Asmodeus was seen as... eccentric, or perhaps even abnormal. Unlike most other Devils who relied on their demonic powers to cast spells or on their special traits which they inherited from their clans, Asmodeus fought using _his own body_. Were it any other Devil, he or she would have been ridiculed and humiliated for their way of fighting which was perceived as "lower-class". But Asmodeus was a Devil whose strength placed him in a class of his own; equaled only by three others whose power was as absurd as his. Against such overwhelming force any negative thoughts towards him were snuffed out, or, at the very least, were kept inside the minds of those who thought them.

Asmodeus' fighting-style was based around the use of his body. Compared to most Devils his physique was absolutely herculean; a result of the dedication and training he devoted to it, which was another rarity among Devils. This gave Asmodeus a monstrous boost to his physical attributes which were already enhanced due to the fact of the entire Devil race having superhuman strength, endurance, and senses. With his bare hands and physical strength alone Asmodeus was capable of taking down Ultimate-Class Devils and their equivalents in the other factions.

However, the powers which wrought terror in the hearts of Fallen Angels and Angels and made his fellow Devils—above all else—revere him as their Satan were achieved when he combined his physical strength with his astounding demonic power. Instead of casting spells, he used his demonic power directly on his body, improving his physical capabilities including his durability, strength, and speed, while at the same time forming a dense aura that covered him in his entirety. Composed completely out of his demonic power, the aura acted like a barrier which could lessen or even outright nullify attacks that impacted it. He could even utilize the aura to augment his offensive potential by focusing it into different parts of his body and then attacking with them. This combination of a highly trained and forged body and unique use of his vast demonic powers enabled him to _tear apart_ Ultimate-Class ranked enemies _with ease_.

Many different assumptions were made on why he fought that way. One of those assumptions had to do with the fact that the use of demonic powers by Devils required them to have the power of imagination, creation, and sensation. So some theorized that Asmodeus could not cast spells because he lacked one of those three attributes and thus had to resort to coming up with a new way to fight.

The problem with that theory was that Asmodeus could, in fact, cast spells. It had been such a long time since he had casted a spell, however, that the only Devils who even remembered that he _could_ cast them were his friends, the other Great Satans. Even though he has the ability to cast spells, at this point his current fighting-style is far more powerful and so much time has passed, anyways, that relying on spells would be detrimental to him.

The real reason why he chose to create this method of fighting was rather simple. As a Devil he initially relied on his demonic power like conventional Devils. He eventually found that fighting this way, at least for him personally, was completely and utterly _boring_. This event left Asmodeus, who was a battle maniac, unsatisfied and motivated him to find a different way to fight in which it would be fun for him, culminating in the style he has now. When his friends, the other Great Satans, found out about it, they just shook their heads and dismissed it fondly, like they did with many other things, as Asmodeus "just being Asmodeus".

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The eyes of all the leaders on the battlefield focused on _Asmodeus_ who had just been sent flying.

It wasn't clear to them exactly what had happened and they could only watch detachedly as his body skipped across the ground at ludicrous speeds, tearing great chunks out of it whenever he bounced. To them, it seemed as if Asmodeus' attack had landed perfectly on Fengo and they had all expected for him to be absolutely destroyed by it. Instead, Asmodeus was flung back and a powerful shockwave was created which smashed the ground around them in a wide arc.

Asmodeus would have continued rag-dolling across the ground if it wasn't for Lucifer and Leviathan catching him. Even though they used their bodies and braced for it, the two of them were still pushed back. They let out a grunt when Asmodeus slammed into them and their feet dug a long trench into the ground as they attempted to stop his momentum.

When the three of them finally stopped, both Lucifer and Leviathan voiced their concern for their friend.

""Asmodeus!""

Falling to his knees, Asmodeus coughed up blood as his body shook from the damage he had taken. His consciousness was wavering as he struggled to regain his senses after receiving that tremendous hit. Looking over at where Fengo was standing, all he could see at the moment was the dust which had swirled up from their exchange.

Thinking back to what had transpired, Asmodeus would have had trouble believing the reality of it had it not been for the injuries which he sustained.

For some reason, when he had heard Fengo calling him out he had a feeling that it was going to be a challenge to fight him. That was why, when Fengo actually did challenge him, his excitement overcame him and he charged towards Fengo immediately. Cloaking himself in his aura he ran towards Fengo without a second thought and launched a powerful attack at him without holding anything back. It was an attack which could have taken out almost any opponent he went up against, whether it was Devil, Angel, or Fallen Angel. It should have killed Fengo and completely broken his body, reducing it to a fine red mist.

But it didn't. Because Fengo _caught_ the attack. With _one hand_.

When Asmodeus arrived in front of Fengo at a speed he thought was imperceptible for him, he was proven wrong when he found Fengo looking directly at him, apparently able to keep up with his speed. That should have been a sign to Asmodeus that something was amiss but he brushed it off and continued with his attack.

When Fengo caught Asmodeus' attack his feet dug into the ground which cracked apart under the force it was subjected to. As his fist closed around Asmodeus' the energy that he gathered for his attack discharged but didn't harm Fengo at all.

Asmodeus, however, was not given any time to think about the ridiculousness of the situation. Before he could even widen his eyes in shock he was hit with the same fist that Fengo used to stop his attack. The punch came so fast that Asmodeus could not even react to it; he only felt it impacting the center of his body with such force that he could feel his bones shattering and his body bending around it; with such force that a shockwave was created as he was flung back at a tremendous speed. It sheared through his protective aura which seemingly offered no resistance at all to Fengo. The defense and endurance that he was so proud of, that had allowed him to survive up until this point, was rendered absolutely useless by a single punch.

Even as Asmodeus was recalling what had transpired, he never took his eyes away from the dust cloud that was obscuring Fengo. As the wind picked up and blew away the dust, it revealed Fengo who was perfectly fine after their exchange. Curiously, he wore a concerned expression on his face.

"Hey, Asmo, are you all right? I didn't hit you too hard, did I?"

Readily taking in the nickname he was given, Asmodeus was struck by the genuine worry that he could hear in Fengo's voice. Apparently Fengo was more troubled about Asmodeus' condition rather than the fact that Asmodeus had just attempted to end his life.

Meanwhile, Lucifer and Leviathan, who were supporting Asmodeus' body, were still attempting to make sense of what they had just witnessed. They weren't the only ones with their mouths hanging wide open, as every single being present there was looking at Fengo and trying to rationalize what they just saw with their own common sense. Unfortunately for them the only thing their minds could come up with was a big, fat, ERROR.

Not paying any attention to the other leaders who had smoke coming out of their ears, Asmodeus gave his reply in an attempt to reassure Fengo. "I'm fine. Don't worry ab—Ack!"

It failed badly, though, when in the middle of it he coughed up more blood.

Giving him a wry smile, Fengo said, "If you're trying to convince someone you're not badly hurt, it would help if you don't, you know, cough up _blood_ in the middle of your sentence?"

Asmodeus put on a dauntless smile as he gave a hearty laugh.

"Gahaha! A little bit of blood is nothing to worry about! This level of injury is nothing compared to the ones I give myself when I train!"

Beelzebub, who had rushed over to Asmodeus immediately, listened and gave him a severe look when he said that. Lucifer and Leviathan also knew that what he said was mere bravado as they were supporting his body to keep him from keeling over on them. In fact, just by looking at Asmodeus the other leaders could tell that he was barely holding himself together.

Although Asmodeus was putting on a brave front, he came to the realization already that he had sustained significant damage and would have to rest for the next couple of days at the bare minimum. Judging by the look in Fengo's eyes, Asmodeus could tell that he knew this as well.

"Well, I guess if you still have the energy to be so cheeky you can't be too badly hurt." Shaking his head, Fengo directed a grin at Asmodeus who returned it with his own.

Leaving Asmodeus in the care of his two other friends, Lucifer stood up in absolute fury.

"You worthless human! How dare you—!"

"Asmodeus, stop!"

As Lucifer prepared to attack Fengo for harming his friend, Asmodeus forced himself up, despite the protests of Leviathan, in order to stop him.

"I was the one who attacked him first, Lucifer. Besides," Giving Fengo a knowing look, Asmodeus continued. "I get the feeling that he was holding back."

Lucifer and the other leaders were alarmed by what Asmodeus said and looked to Fengo who gave a shrug.

"It was just meant to be a demonstration for all of you. I wasn't aiming to kill Asmo, but it was kind of hard to determine how much it would take to bring him down and I ended up overdoing it a bit."

Falling back onto his knees, Asmodeus let out a groan.

"Just 'a bit', huh?"

Fengo put on an apologetic smile when he heard that.

"Yeah, sorry about that. But are you convinced now?"

Asmodeus quieted when he was asked that. Before, when Fengo announced his intention to keep the peace between the Three Factions, he was incredulous. He couldn't believe that anyone, let alone a human, had the power to do what he claimed. He was pleasantly surprised when Fengo suddenly challenged him and he found himself liking that kind of personality, which was why he thought it a shame that he was going to die. He never could have imagined in his wildest dreams what would happen next and now he found himself believing in Fengo. The possibility of an end to the Great War and peace between the Three Factions now seemed to be more than just an unrealistic hope.

Making up his mind, Asmodeus directed a wide smile at Fengo.

"Yes, I am. You have shown me your power, and you have my full cooperation in ending the Great War."

All of the leaders were stunned with Asmodeus' frank declaration but none more so than the other Great Satans. Lucifer, Leviathan, and Beelzebub looked at their friend and saw neither hesitance nor doubt in his expression.

Looking intensely at his friend Beelzebub spoke up, questioning him. "Are you sure about this Asmodeus?"

Releasing a weary sigh, Asmodeus replied to him. "I'm tired, Beelzebub. I'm tired of fighting this war; I'm tired of seeing our fellow Devils die in this pointless conflict and I'm tired of seeing our children being born, fighting, and dying in it. I once believed that the Three Factions were doomed to mutual extermination and that all that awaited our race was death. I had lost all hope... until now." Even though Asmodeus was kneeling on the ground and was in terrible shape, he was exuding a presence in this moment that commanded the attentions of all who were present with indomitable power and charisma; a presence which designated him as nothing less than the Devil's greatest: a Great Satan. "This man showed me that I was not alone in my thinking; that, of all people, my _enemies_ wanted to end this war as much as I did. He showed us a path to a better future, volunteering to help us in the process and proved to me that he has the power to see it through. For the Devils—for the sake of a better future—I will place my full effort towards ending the Great War and place my trust in Fengo."

Asmodeus' powerful words captured the full attentions of all of the faction leaders present. His heartfelt speech struck a chord with what they all felt but were too afraid to speak out loud for fear of appearing weak in this crucial situation. Because Asmodeus took the plunge, the pressure that was on the leaders disappeared and the mood shifted, becoming more optimistic as the end to the Great War appeared closer than ever.

Lucifer, Beelzebub, and Leviathan closely listened to their friend, being the ones who understood him the most out of everyone there. His words hit them especially hard because they went through what he went through and shared their feelings and experiences with each other. As they looked into each other's eyes and silently communicated, they all came to an agreement, nodding to one another.

Lucifer looked towards the other leaders before glaring at Fengo. When Fengo only responded by smiling widely at him with innocent eyes full of expectation he clicked his tongue. For some reason he didn't like the look on Fengo's face and had the feeling that Fengo was around messing with him. Brushing aside his annoyance with the human Lucifer made a declaration that changed the course of history forever.

"Speaking on behalf of the Great Satans and the Devil Faction, I, Lucifer, declare our full cooperation with Fengo on ending the Great War."

Starting with the other leaders who heard him there was a surge of shock which spread to the Angels, Devils, and Fallen Angels who surrounded them, like the ripples on a pond. Shocked exclamations and excited murmurs broke out among the forces of the Three Factions as they began to understand the full reality of the situation and the implications this moment would have for the future.

Azazel quickly recovered from his shock and the smile that grew on his face went from ear to ear. Like a child in a candy store his body started to vibrate in place from the excitement and emotions he was feeling as these events unfolded in front of him. He couldn't believe that an end to the Great War was so close at hand and turned around to look at his fellow Grigori Leaders' reactions.

They fared no better than Azazel when they realized what was happening and the new direction the future was heading towards. Their eyes shined brightly with hope as their spirits were finally lifted after countless years of constant warfare. The bleak fate that awaited them and their fellow Fallen Angels could be defied; it could be changed for the better. They were just as excited as Azazel was at the prospect of a ceasefire to end the Great War and they showed it by smiling and nodding their heads at him, giving their consent.

Well, _most_ of them did, anyways.

Finding the reactions he had been expecting, Azazel turned back around and announced his declaration with a jubilant smile.

"Speaking on behalf of the Grigori Leaders and the Fallen Angel Faction, I, Azazel, declare our full cooperation with Fengo, and the Devil Faction, on ending the Great War."

As his surroundings erupted in a cacophony of shouts and noises coming from all Three Factions, Azazel looked straight on at Lucifer with a cocky grin on his face.

Ignoring the reactions of his and the other factions' soldiers, Lucifer met Azazel's gaze with a distasteful look in his eyes. When Azazel replied by crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow, Lucifer pursed his lips and inclined his head towards him. Receiving Lucifer's positive response Azazel pumped his fist, prompting Lucifer to roll his eyes at him.

Together they turned to face the Biblical God, plunging the battlefield once more into silence.

The mood took a drastic turn as the tension skyrocketed. On one side were the forces of the Devils and Fallen Angels who watched the Angels on the other side.

As his Angelic forces shifted uncomfortably behind him, the Biblical God's mind was whirling with activity.

He couldn't believe that they somehow went from killing each other to the Devils and Fallen Angels agreeing to cooperate together with some random human to end the Great War. It was just too ridiculous and any moment now he was expecting for the other shoe to drop them straight into their graves. He was also struck with profound irony when he thought about how the _Devils_ of all beings were the first to declare their decision to end the Great War peacefully. It just went to show how little he actually knew and understood the other factions.

However, he smiled when he thought about the fact that the opportunities to better understand them would soon come.

"Speaking on behalf of Heaven and the Angel Faction, I, the Biblical God, declare our full cooperation with Fengo, the Devil Faction, and the Fallen Angel Faction, on ending the Great War."

His voice rang clear across the battlefield. Everyone there heard it but in that moment could not decide on what to do or how to react. The faction leaders just continued to look back and forth amongst each other as their soldiers appeared to be unable to process the situation.

In the stilted and awkward silence Fengo spoke up, drawing all of the attention back towards him.

"Then with the compliance of the Devils, Fallen Angels, and Angels," He said casually, as if speaking about the weather.

"The Great War is over."

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It was all well and good to proclaim that the Great War had ended but now it was time for the Three Factions to actually perform the necessary steps to achieve it.

The Biblical God began by stating that he would pull back all of his Angels from the Underworld back into Heaven and that the Devils and Fallen Angels would be notified if any Angels would return for whatever reason. Lucifer and Azazel followed up by saying that they would pull their own forces back to their respective territories, creating neutral zones that had once been occupied by the forces of the Three Factions. Those areas in the Underworld would not be intruded upon by any faction and any entry into either Fallen Angel or Devil territory would be preceded by a notification beforehand.

For now this is what they all decided on and would carry out immediately, the purpose of this being to stop all of the current conflict and battles going on between them. This would also be a test to see if a ceasefire between the Three Factions was possible or not and, more importantly, set the stage for improved relations among them.

After deciding on their plan of action, the leaders all began to head back to their homes to inform their people of everything that had happened and was going to happen in the near future. They were all excited to announce to their people that the Great War was over and optimistic at what was to come.

Azazel was enjoying the bewildered expressions on the faces of his and the other factions' forces as they were told to go back and that they no longer needed to fight anymore. Seeing these veteran soldiers acting like disoriented children brought an impish smile to his face and he noticed some of the other leaders enjoying themselves as well. As he explained the situation to them and saw them off, he looked back towards Fengo who was silently watching all of this with a small smile and eyes that seemed unfocused and lost in thought.

Noticing Azazel's gaze on him Fengo's eyes regained their vitality as he looked back.

Azazel was curious about Fengo's state just now but decided not to pursue it at the moment.

"What is it Azzy?"

"I was just wondering what you were planning on doing now."

As Fengo tilted his head in thought the other faction leaders, hearing Azazel's question, listened in.

"I'll give all of you some time to notify your people and to get everything in order. After that I'll make my way around to each of the factions."

The leaders accepted his response but Azazel raised a concern. "Will you be okay? And how will you locate us?"

"I'll be fine." Fengo said, dismissing Azazel's worry.

Azazel and some of the leaders raised their eyebrow at this but shrugged it off in the end. If he said so then it'd be fine. Probably.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Fengo watched as the last of the Angels, Devils, and Fallen Angels teleported away, leaving him alone on the scarred battlefield. Looking around at the various damages that were inflicted on the land around him he shook his head and sighed.

"What a mess they made..."

Kneeling on one leg, he placed his hand with his palm facing down on the ground and closed his eyes.

Very quickly an ephemeral figure materialized in front of him. It was a beautiful woman wearing a loose, flowing dress, looking down at him with gentle eyes and a kind smile.

When she appeared it was as if nature itself responded to her presence; the air around them became more pure and fresh and the environment they were in was revitalized.

Opening his eyes and meeting hers, Fengo smiled back.

Bending down she stroked his cheek with her hand and gave him a kiss on it before disappearing.

Standing up and looking around again, he could see that the damage the land had sustained was being repaired rapidly and soon it was as if the battlefield wasn't marred in the first place. He gave a nod once he saw that his work was done.

"So what do you think, Cali?"

If there was anyone left to watch him they would have been treated to the sight of Fengo apparently talking to himself.

[I am constantly amazed at the situations you always seem to find yourself in.]

"You and me both." He said, chuckling when he heard the melodic voice in his head.

[Well it's not as if we haven't been through something like this before. And this time around it started out pretty well.]

"I know, right? Compared to some of those other times this is going swimmingly. No one has even died yet!" He exclaimed cheerfully.

Their conversation ending there, Fengo looked up at the beautiful purple sky of the Underworld as multiple thoughts and feelings ran through his mind.

"Three factions fighting in an eternal war where their only options were to fight or die. Trapped on an endless path of despair they fought and fought until one day a random man showed up in the middle of their death-match and somehow managed to convince them to stop fighting. Now it's up to that one man to make sure that those factions come to understand one another and live in peace and harmony, instead of killing themselves in a race to exterminate each other."

While reminiscing on recent events, he summed up his situation in one eloquent and elegant sentence.

"This is going to be such a pain in the ass."

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 **So this is the first chapter of the first fan fiction I've ever written. I was originally writing this story only for myself, but then I figured that since I already have it I might as well post it too. I'm testing the waters here a little bit and I'm curious as to what the response will be like. So if you want to, just drop your thoughts into a review or PM. Good thoughts, bad thoughts, questions, advice, complaints or even flames, I'll gladly take them all.**

 **And thanks for reading :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own** _ **High School DxD**_

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As Fengo started walking away from the battlefield to begin exploring the Underworld, he froze in mid-step when he noticed a presence which hadn't been there before. Turning around, he looked at what had stopped him.

Standing in front of him was a cute young girl. She had long, glossy black hair which reached all the way down to her hips and a small stature; her height just a fraction of Fengo's own. Well-hidden by her hair in such a way that Fengo could barely notice them were her ears, which ended in pointy tips. She was wearing a black dress and her gray eyes were completely blank and unexpressive.

Incidentally, her emotionless eyes were what Fengo noticed first and foremost. They immediately captured his attention and almost automatically he began walking towards her with a gentle smile on his face.

Once he reached her, he bent down so that he was at eye-level with her.

"Hey there, little one."

She didn't respond at all and continued to stare at him in a way that would have outright subdued anyone else.

Fengo was undaunted, however, and pressed onwards. "My name's Fengo. What's yours?"

Again she didn't answer, but Fengo was unwilling to back down and thus the two titans engaged in a battle of wills.

Anyone watching the two would have been incredulous at the ridiculousness of the situation. On one side was a small girl, and on the other a man who would have towered over her had he not been bending down. The smile on the man's face and the lack of emotion from the young girl clashed and created a quiet pressure that bore down on their surroundings. They were staring at each other directly in the eyes and neither was apparently willing to back down.

For the first couple of minutes this would have been an amusing sight to any spectators. After around ten minutes had passed, those same spectators would have begun to feel just a little bit awkward and they would have felt uncomfortable after the thirty-minute mark.

However, as _hours_ passed and the two of them continued to remain in that same position with literally no change from them at all, anybody watching would have felt unsettled and disturbed at how unnatural the whole situation was.

Finally, after an absurd amount of time had passed, the young girl responded to him. "...I, am Ophis."

Her intonation and manner of speaking was decidedly odd; as if she had never spoken to anyone before, or spoken at all.

"'Ophis, huh? That's a lovely name."

As Ophis heard Fengo complimenting her name with sincerity in his voice and a heartfelt smile on his face, she felt a twinge of some "unknown thing" from inside of her. For a brief moment, she pondered on that mysterious phenomenon which she had never observed happening to her before.

However, Ophis discarded that train of thought as Fengo straightened his back and looked down at her with the same gentle smile she first saw on him.

"So, what can I do for you, Ophis?"

"..."

Ophis didn't immediately respond and they descended once more into silence, though the silence this time was more comfortable and relaxed than the one before it. She wondered why she left her home, the Dimensional Gap, for the first time in her existence. It had everything she wanted and needed and she was perfectly content in living there until the end of time. She would occasionally peek into some of the other realms if something caught her interest, but those moments were few and far between and she had never before left her home to do so.

Ophis thought long and hard on why she specifically left the Dimensional Gap to meet Fengo and eventually came up with a simple answer to her question.

"You, interest me." Even though she said this in her completely monotone voice, for the briefest of moments, there was a flash of "something" in her usually blank eyes.

Fengo blinked at Ophis' response, which was to her own internal question and not his own.

"Err, okay. Why do I interest you?"

"You are not from here."

Fengo's eyes flashed and his smile slightly widened as he half-heartedly tried to play dumb. "What do you mean by that?"

"You are not from this dimension." Ophis replied immediately, not even noticing his lackluster attempt to deceive her.

"So you noticed, huh?" Fengo confirmed easily, apparently not caring that she knew.

"I, saw your portal. It threaded a tunnel to this dimension from another one." Ophis said, recalling the moment she witnessed the portal first opening up. She had never seen anything like it and could only theorize how difficult it must have been to create a stable passageway between entirely separate dimensions. The difficulty in doing so would go beyond conventional problems like distance and direction. It had to involve some kind of power with which he used to locate this dimension and another power to actually create the passageway and make it stable enough to traverse through.

"Yep." He said. "You're absolutely correct. Good job, Ophis." As he praised Ophis and beamed at her, he also reached out with his hand to pet her head.

Once again Ophis felt that "unknown thing" pulse from deep within her when she heard Fengo's praise. Then, when he stroked her head, her eyes slightly narrowed as that "unknown thing" began to flutter around inside of her.

Fengo's eyes softened and his smile became warmer when he saw her reaction. Seeing the ever-impassive Ophis squint her eyes in pleasure from his petting was just too adorable, so he continued to pamper her.

Meanwhile, Ophis was just basking in the unknown sensations that Fengo was generating within her. For the first time in her existence, she actively wanted something: she wanted those sensations to continue.

After some time had passed, she felt Fengo stop and perceived another "unknown thing" forming within her, causing her to crane her head up to gaze at him.

Although Ophis remained as emotionless as ever, when she looked up at him like that, Fengo could only think that she was acting like a spoiled child.

Giving her a wry smile, he started rubbing her head again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Several more hours passed again before Fengo reluctantly brought the pampering session to an end.

He was forced to explain to her that he had something else he needed to do at the moment all the while enduring Ophis' gaze, which managed to look beseeching to him even though she herself still remained emotionless.

After it seemed like he managed to convince her that he needed to leave, he bent down so that he was looking into her eyes again. Grabbing one of her small hands, he entwined their fingers together while he grabbed her other hand and brought it to his chest where he held it there.

After doing that he smiled and said, "Do not worry, Ophis. I promise we will meet again soon."

Ophis felt a comforting warmth from where their hands were entwined and could feel the calm beating of his heart from her other hand. And, for some reason, as Ophis looked into his blue eyes, she believed that since he said so, since he promised, it would definitely come to pass.

"...Yes."

Fengo's smile broadened when he heard her reply.

"Then, until we meet again, Ophis."

"Yes... Fengo." She said, calling him by name.

Happiness seemed to radiate out of Fengo as he heard her articulating his name for the first time.

Separating from her, he gave her a cheerful nod and watched as the air around her began to vibrate and grow hazy before she disappeared.

He stood straight back up again and stared at the spot where Ophis had departed from.

"What an interesting little girl."

[You know she's not a little girl, right?]

Cali's voice rang through his head.

"Ahh, even though she's a Dragon or whatever, it doesn't matter. As far as I'm concerned, she's just a little girl."

[Fufufu. That's just like you, Fengo.] Cali said affectionately, chuckling. [Well, this way is fine too.]

Adjusting his clothing, he dusted himself off and began to walk away with an excited gleam in his eyes and a grin on his face. He was looking forward to finding out what this new land had to offer.

"So, shall we?"

[Yes, let's.]

Then, Fengo vanished.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

In a conference room located in the main headquarters of the Grigori organization were all of the leaders of the Fallen Angels. Azazel, Shemhazai, Baraqiel, Kokabiel, Armaros, Sahariel, Penemue, and Tamiel were all standing around a table and discussing with one another. They were in the middle of a meeting to determine the current state of affairs and were all giving their reports.

 _I wonder where Fengo is._

Azazel was listening to Shemhazai, his Vice Governor General, give his report. At the same time, he was also thinking about their unusual acquaintance.

It had been some time since Azazel had last seen the man and he was unsure what Fengo had been up to during it. Was he visiting the other factions first? Or was he just wandering all over the Underworld haphazardly? And for that matter, how would he even make his way to them and the other factions?

There were so many questions and unknowns that surrounded Fengo and his actions that Azazel couldn't help but worry about it. Doubt began to creep in concerning whether or not it was wise for him to put so much trust and hope into Fengo. For all he knew, Fengo could have just completely played all of them for fools and was now laughing at them as they scrambled around in the dark.

As his thoughts took a pessimistic spiral downwards, Azazel was broken out of them when he heard a series of knocks that interrupted Shemhazai as well.

Azazel and his fellow leaders looked towards the door leading outside of the conference room where the knocks originated from.

Giving his permission, Azazel said, "Enter."

The door opened to reveal one of his Fallen Angel subordinates who saluted to the leaders in the room after making his way in.

"What is it?" Azazel questioned.

"Governor Azazel, there is someone at the entrance requesting to see the leaders of the Fallen Angels. He doesn't appear to be one of us, nor does he seem to be an Angel or Devil, and he somehow managed to make it inside the headquarters without anyone noticing."

Looks of realization appeared in Azazel and the other leaders' eyes as they all had a vague suspicion on who that was. Before jumping to conclusions, Azazel decided to make sure that the person asking for them was the same person they were all thinking about.

"Does he have a happy-go-lucky attitude, pointlessly-bright red hair, blue eyes, and a constant smile on his face?"

While some of the leaders grinned at the rather accurate description of Fengo, the subordinate furrowed his eyebrows.

"Umm... Yes. He is exactly as you described him, Governor."

Azazel looked towards his companions, directing a grin at them when he confirmed everyone's thoughts.

However, Shemhazai was frowning as he thought about something their subordinate had mentioned.

"That last thing you reported. You said that he made it inside the headquarters without anyone noticing?" He asked, bring up his concern.

The subordinate shifted uncomfortably as he answered. "Yes, Vice Governor Shemhazai."

Hearing this, the other leaders became interested and listened on as Shemhazai further questioned him.

"Are you saying that he made it past the door, the guards, the barriers—our _entire_ security system and _no one_ noticed?"

"...Yes, Vice Governor." The subordinate replied, looking even more uncomfortable.

Shemhazai sighed.

"...How?"

"W-We don't know, Vice Governor."

"...Then how did you find him?"

"W-Well..."

Seeing his subordinate hesitate, Shemhazai impatiently urged him on. "Just spit it out!"

"W-We didn't exactly find him, Vice Governor..."

Shemhazai and his fellow leaders raised their eyebrows at this.

"H-He walked up to us while we were on guard duty and asked, 'Hey, can you tell me where I can find Azzy? I'm here for a chat with him and his buddies.'"

As the subordinate finished his story and averted his eyes, the room descended into silence. The subordinate broke out into a cold sweat as the silence dragged on, but thankfully for him it was soon broken.

"Pfft."

It was difficult to tell who started it, but three of the Fallen Angel leaders soon burst out into laughter.

"Guhahahahaha!"

""Hahahahahaha!""

Armaros, Azazel, and Penemue doubled over, holding their stomachs in delightful amusement.

Shemhazai just sighed again and palmed his face in consternation.

Azazel wiped away a mirthful tear from his eye as he settled down.

"Ahh, yeah. That's definitely Fengo." He said cheerfully.

"Guhaha! What an interesting guy!"

"Fufufu. I can't wait to talk to him personally."

Continuing after Azazel, Armaros and Penemue spoke up as well after calming down.

Rubbing his face wearily with his hand, Shemhazai asked his subordinate another question. "Where is he right now?"

The subordinate had felt relief when he witnessed his leaders' reactions. When Shemhazai focused on him once again, he directed his attention towards him.

"Before I had left to report the situation, we had surrounded him so that he couldn't do anything."

"Bring him here."

"Right away, Vice Governor!"

The subordinate saluted before leaving to carry out his orders, closing the door behind him.

A little bit after that, Azazel puffed out his chest proudly and declared smugly, "See? I told you guys he would come."

Sahariel looked amused as he deflated Azazel's ego. "Even though you were the one who was worried the most."

"No I wasn't!" Azazel denied immediately.

However, including Sahariel, everyone in the room could easily see through Azazel's lie.

Looking at him with half-opened eyes, Shemhazai said, "Yes you were. In fact, you were probably thinking about it while I was giving my report just now."

"Guh!"

"Adding on to Shemhazai, you often seemed to be lost in thought and inattentive lately." Baraqiel added.

"Gah!"

"I've heard you muttering to yourself and mentioning the name 'Fengo'."

"Ugh..."

Tamiel delivered the final blow to Azazel who had already been figuratively stabbed by his friends' remarks. Everyone shared a smile as they gazed upon Azazel who was now on his hands and knees with a depressing rain cloud hanging over him.

Although they were having some fun with him, they all knew that Azazel was, actually, really worried. He and Fengo had actually gotten along very well in the short amount of time that had passed, a fact that had surprised them, which could also be the reason that he placed his trust and hope in Fengo. That was a very risky move to make and they knew that Azazel would have been devastated if his belief in him was betrayed, even if he had realized that that was a possibility from the beginning.

Azazel perked up, however, when he heard faint voices coming from the hallway outside.

"... No way! Did that really happen?"

"Haha, really, really it did! You should have seen Azzy and the rest of them. The looks on their faces were priceless."

Everyone in the conference room could make out the voice of the subordinate who had been sent off and recognized the cheerful tone of the other.

"So the Great War is really over, huh? When Governor Azazel announced that to us I think that everyone thought that it was just a hoax."

"...Anyways, we're here. They're right through that door."

The door to the conference room opened to reveal their subordinate and a familiar crimson-haired, blue-eyed figure standing behind him.

Fengo smiled when he saw everyone in the room.

"Hey, everyone." He greeted, waving his hand at them.

The subordinate looked aside at Fengo, a little shocked that he was acting so casual with his leaders.

He was even more shocked when Azazel walked up to them, smiling, and greeted him back. "Yo. You're finally here."

Addressing his subordinate, Azazel said, "Thanks for bringing him. You can go now."

He saluted his Governor and was about to leave when Fengo stopped him, saying, "I'll see you later, Jacob."

Giving Fengo a grin, Jacob replied to him. "I look forward to it, Fengo."

Azazel was surprised that Fengo had already befriended his subordinate in such a short time and voiced it after he left. "You two are already friends, huh."

"Yeah. He's a good guy." Fengo replied cheerfully.

Grinning at his simple response, Azazel switched topics. "So where have you been? It's been a while since that day."

"Oh, I've been... around." Fengo said ambiguously.

Azazel was not the only one who raised their brow at Fengo's answer.

"'Around'?"

"You know... various places."

Azazel saw that he wasn't going to get a clear answer from him. When he was about to say something else, he was interrupted by Fengo.

"But more importantly, Azzy... 'Pointlessly-bright'?" Fengo said. There was a smile on his face but his eye was twitching.

"Whatever do you mean, Fengo?" Azazel said innocently, whistling while averting his gaze.

Fengo wasn't buying any of it; he could clearly see the smile tugging at Azazel's lips. "Oh spare me, Azzy."

"Besides," Fengo smirked. "You are the last person I want to hear that from."

Azazel froze in place as his smile became strained. "Oh? What do you mean by that?"

Fengo glanced at Azazel's hair before looking away and covering his mouth.

"Pfft."

"Oi. You have something to say about my hair?"

"No, nothing. I mean, your dual colored hair is... Pfft... Nice."

"Ahh, well at least people don't have to squint or cover their eyes when they look at _my_ hair."

"Ha ha, is that so?"

"Ha ha, yeah."

By this point, the two were pushing their foreheads up against one another and, although they still had smiles on their faces, were glaring bloody murder at each other. If one looked closely enough, streaks of lightning could be seen jumping between their eyes.

""Ahahahaha!""

All of a sudden they pulled back and started laughing loudly.

As the rest of the leaders looked on at the two who were laughing their heads off like idiots, they were inwardly amazed at how well Fengo got along with Azazel. At the same time, they were also resigned at the fact that their lives had just become more troublesome.

"So, would you mind introducing me to your friends?" Fengo asked Azazel, after they eventually settled down.

"Yeah, come on over."

Following Azazel to the conference table that the other leaders were standing around, Fengo was introduced to the leaders of the Grigori.

"Everyone already knows this, but this guy's Fengo." Azazel said, pointing at him. Fengo waved to everyone around the table.

"This is Shemhazai." Azazel said, starting with his Vice Governor General.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Fengo." Shemhazai stated formally.

The first feature of Shemhazai's that Fengo noticed was his pure white hair. It was of medium length and unlike the white hair of the elderly in that it looked vibrant and gave him a distinguished and striking look. He had blue eyes set on a serious-looking face that could turn heads and appeared to have a strong body underneath his clothing.

"It's nice to meet you too, Shemmy!" Fengo chirped in response.

Closing his eyes, Shemhazai said, "My name is Shemhazai and I would appreciate—"

"Next is Tamiel." Azazel interrupted, cutting Shemhazai off. This caused him to twitch and clench his fists as he silently fumed at his idiot of a friend.

Ignoring Shemhazai's plight as well, Fengo looked at who Azazel pointed to.

Tamiel was a tall, handsome man with long blonde hair and blue eyes. He was wearing robes that were decorated with many ornaments and was wearing a circlet on his head. He had an impassive expression on his face and was surrounded in a calm atmosphere.

He nodded his head at Fengo when he was introduced.

"Nice to meet you, Tammy."

When Azazel saw that there was no other response from Tamiel, he moved on.

"He is Armaros." Azazel said, pointing to another man.

Looking at Armaros Fengo thought that he looked like a villain. He had wild brown hair, a wild beard, and an eye patch covering one of his eyes. Fengo saw that his uncovered eye was green and that it was filled with vitality. He had a good physique and he spoke in a thick and booming voice.

"It's nice to meet you, Fengo!"

"Likewise, Armos!"

"Guhaha! I've never had a nickname before. How interesting!"

Azazel grinned at Armaros' behavior and introduced the next person.

"That is Baraqiel."

Baraqiel was a gruff, middle-aged-looking man. He possessed a muscular body and had black hair and a matching well-kept beard. His eyes were narrow, almost setting into a thin line, and contributed to his severe countenance. All in all, he looked like an honest and somewhat boorish warrior.

"I look forward to our future interactions." He said seriously.

When Fengo did not respond immediately, Baraqiel and the others all regarded him while wondering what was wrong. He was just looking at Baraqiel, almost quizzically, as if trying to puzzle something out. Baraqiel received a bad premonition about Fengo's silence and was about to speak up when Fengo did.

"Ah." The leaders watched as Fengo brought his fist down into his palm and made a sound of realization.

"You're an 'M', aren't you?"

Baraqiel snapped.

"Uuuooohhh! What did you call me?!"

Shemhazai and Armaros were forced to hold Baraqiel back, lest he charge towards Fengo and murder him.

Holding his hands up placatingly, Fengo tried to calm him down. "Ahaha, I was only kidding! Just kidding."

Baraqiel didn't trust the smile on Fengo's face nor his words, but managed to calm himself down anyway. He glared irritatedly at some of his friends who were holding their hands to their mouths, trying to stifle their laughter.

Azazel couldn't wipe the smile off his face as he whispered to Fengo out of the corner of his mouth. "He's totally an M."

"Yeah, definitely." Fengo replied back, his hand covering his mouth conspiratorially.

Baraqiel heard them, of course, but he refused to give in and show any more reactions to their teasing.

"It's nice to meet you, Barry." Fengo said afterwards, his smile and voice more genuine now.

Baraqiel just grunted and looked away, still annoyed and embarrassed from the previous incident.

"Aww, look at him. Poor Barry is embarrassed now." Penemue smiled mischievously as she teased him.

A vein throbbed on Baraqiel's forehead as he snapped at her. "Don't call me that."

"Fufufu."

"The giggling woman over there is Penemue." Azazel said, thoroughly enjoying the antics he was witnessing.

"I think that we're going to have lots of fun together, Fengo." Penemue said with a wink, giving him a playful smile.

Penemue was an incredibly beautiful woman. She had a stunning and gorgeous body with large breasts, long purple hair, and intense violet eyes. At first glance her appearance would suggest that she was strict and was the calm and collected type. However, her easy-going attitude and light-hearted behavior revealed to Fengo what she was really like.

Giving her a wide smile, Fengo said, "Definitely. Look forward to it, Penny."

Their eyes sparkled like mischievous children as they looked at each other and everyone in the room had an ominous premonition of the trouble those two were certainly going to get themselves into.

Azazel chimed back in. "Before that, there are still two more people for me to introduce."

"The guy with the glasses is Sahariel." Azazel said, this time pointing at another man.

Sahariel was a young man who was wearing a white lab coat and a pair of thick glasses. He was of a smaller stature than the others in the room and had messy black hair that seemed as if it hadn't been combed in... Ever. His appearance gave Fengo the overall impression that he was a scientist or the like.

Fengo's hunch about him was proven correct by Sahariel's next words. "You said that you were a human, correct? How fascinating. I have never seen a human like you before and I would love to have the opportunity to conduct some experiments with you."

"Sure, Sari. It sounds like it'd be fun."

"Shishishi." Sahariel let out a creepy laugh as a black aura seemed to billow out of him and cover his body. "I wonder what I should do first. Should I take a look at his insides or should I test his mental endurance? I wonder how much he can take before he breaks..."

As Sahariel began muttering dangerous-sounding things to himself, Fengo just gave him a wry smile.

"Riiight..."

"And moving on," Azazel continued seamlessly, as if he was used to Sahariel's strange behavior. "Last but not least is Kokabiel."

Looking over at the last person that Azazel introduced to him, Fengo was met by a disdainful glare that was set upon a regal visage. Wearing fine black robes, Kokabiel had long black hair that was dark as night and yellow eyes which were trying to bore a hole through Fengo's head.

"Nice to meet—"

"You will not receive any welcome from me, _human_."

Unperturbed by Kokabiel's attitude, Fengo tried to extend his greetings to him only to be rejected before he could even finish speaking.

"Kokabiel..." Azazel frowned at his long-time comrade.

"Does no one else see the ridiculousness of this situation?" He said angrily, looking at everyone there. "For thousands of years we have fought the Great War and were on the verge of winning it that day. Then all of sudden a _human_ of all things shows up, declares the Great War to be over, and we all just return to our homes with our tails between our legs?"

The room was silent as they all listened to Kokabiel.

"Don't fucking joke with me!" Kokabiel roared as he slammed the table in front of him, smashing it into splinters. Pieces of the table and papers were sent flying around the room as he vented his anger.

"We are the Grigori! Defying the Biblical God we gained our freedom and when he tried to take it away from us we denied him by fighting back! When the Devils attempted to force us out of our new homes we fought back! Even as we fought against both of the other Factions we triumphed! We Fallen Angels are the superior beings and I am disgusted at the fact that we were forced to work together with our mortal enemies because a lowly _human_ suggested the idiotic idea of peace!"

Azazel's frown became more pronounced the longer Kokabiel went on but he was careful to keep the darker emotions he was feeling from showing on his face. Glancing around at his other friends' faces he could tell that they were doing the same.

Kokabiel's words captured the general feeling of what a lot of Fallen Angels felt when they were told that the Great War had ended. Like Kokabiel himself, some felt that they could have won if they had only kept on fighting, believing in their own natural superiority over their enemies and refusing to think otherwise.

However, above all else, what Kokabiel's words represented was the doubt and negativity that many Fallen Angels felt when they were presented with this situation. It might not be for exactly the same reasons as Kokabiel and those like him, but there were plenty of others to choose from and it was easy to think of only the worst outcomes.

That same process was occurring within the leaders of the Grigori as they struggled to fight against the negative emotions that were hiding deep inside them and whispering dark thoughts in their minds. Kokabiel's words had brought their fears and doubts out into the forefront of their thoughts and it seemed as if they would succumb to them as well.

An end to the Great War...? Ridiculous...

Peace between the Three Factions...? Impossible...

The other factions are surely thinking the same thing, so wouldn't it be better if we just attacked them and wiped them out right now...?

"Peace? How can there possibly be peace?!" Kokabiel continued. "To lower our weapons after we have already stabbed them into our enemies is absolutely foolish! No, the only option is to fight and kill them all!"

Kokabiel is right... How can our enemies possibly forgive us after we have killed so many of their people..?

We have to protect our people first...

If we attack them now, we could take them by surprise and _truly_ end the Great War...

"Now is the perfect chance to—!"

"Hey, Biel."

The Fallen Angel leaders' dark thoughts were put on hold as they turned to look at Fengo when he nonchalantly interrupted Kokabiel, who scowled at the interruption and at Fengo's nickname for him.

"Listen, I'm really sorry to interrupt you in the middle of your tirade—."

Fengo paused as he gained a thoughtful look on his face.

"...Well, no, I'm not sorry at all, actually."

Kokabiel felt his anger climb further at that.

"Anyways!" Fengo said, denying Kokabiel a chance to get a word in when he was about to respond.

"I'm not sure if your friends have ever told you this before, so I'll just tell it to you right now."

Here, Fengo paused for dramatic effect and all of the Fallen Angel leaders subconsciously leaned in as they awaited his words. Even Kokabiel was wondering what Fengo was going to say.

Blue clashed with yellow as Fengo looked directly into Kokabiel's eyes when he delivered his words.

"You're an idiot."

The refreshing smile on Fengo's face as he said this only pissed off Kokabiel more.

The other Fallen Angel leaders, meanwhile, were gaping at Fengo who had just bluntly insulted Kokabiel.

"I won't claim to know much about the history of your race or the history of the Great War," Fengo continued. "But what I _do_ know is that thousands of years of constant warfare are usually rather detrimental to the continued well-being of any race, no matter how superior they may think they are."

"Do you doubt my words, _human_?" Kokabiel hissed, putting as much derision as he could into the word.

"Yes, I do." Fengo said easily, ignoring the threatening tone in Kokabiel's words. "From what I've seen so far, although there are obvious differences between the three races, I don't believe that _any_ of the three races are inherently superior to the others."

Fengo fearlessly matched Kokabiel's eyes which were now glaring at him dangerously.

"From the same vein, I find your belief that the Fallen Angels were going to win the Great War to be hilariously delusional. And just in case you've already forgotten, I only _suggested_ the idea of peace while it was all of you who agreed upon it. If you guys had truly wanted to end each other that day…" Fengo shrugged his shoulders. "I would have just left."

Kokabiel was trembling with rage as his vision was dyed red the more Fengo spoke.

"It takes strength to lower your weapons after they have already been raised, Biel." Fengo went on. "And it takes wisdom to look beyond the easy solution of just killing everything."

The other Fallen Angel leaders had been listening with rapt attention to the two of them as they went back and forth, but they grew alarmed as they gazed upon Kokabiel. His fists were clenched at his sides and his demeanor was becoming increasingly more dangerous. As Kokabiel's power began to leak out of him and fill the room, they glanced at each other and nodded, preparing themselves to stop him by force if necessary.

Looking over at Fengo, they couldn't tell if he had not noticed the danger that he was in or if he did know but just didn't care.

Whether or not he was aware of how close Kokabiel was to his breaking point, Fengo continued onwards.

"Besides," Fengo said, giving Kokabiel a knowing smile. "Is the reason you're so angry about this whole thing really because of the Fallen Angel's superiority and all that?"

Every other person in the room gave Fengo a quizzical look at what he said. Kokabiel had clearly stated his grievances with the agreement that had been reached between the Three Factions and it was in line with what a large portion of their people believed as well.

"Or is the real reason you want the Great War to continue is because you want to keep fighting?"

The Fallen Angel leaders looked at their friend when Fengo pointed out something they hadn't taken into account.

Kokabiel showed no outward reaction to what Fengo said, but that wasn't enough to deceive him.

"Ahh, I'd recognize that look anywhere." Spotting what he was searching for in Kokabiel's eyes, Fengo smiled triumphantly. "You're the type of person who only feels alive when you're trading blows with others in a life-or-death battle, aren't you?"

That's right. How could they have forgotten? For as long as they have known him, Kokabiel had always been like that.

"When you're in the middle of a fight, does your heart not race and are your spirits not lifted as you engage in combat with your opponent?" Fengo spoke as if he could see straight through Kokabiel's very being. "Do you not enjoy the thrill and excitement of facing an equal in a contest of power and strength?"

From the ferocious smile slowly growing on Kokabiel's face and the gleam of light appearing in his eyes, it was obvious to everyone in the room that Fengo had been spot-on.

The Fallen Angel leaders now understood the real reason behind Kokabiel's reluctance and push-back against the peace they all wanted between the Three Factions. Kokabiel, after all…

"In the end, you're a—"

He had always been a—

"Battle-maniac."

The room was silent as everybody awaited Kokabiel's reaction to Fengo's accusation, wondering what was going to happen next.

On one side was Kokabiel, who was wearing the same smile he would have during a heated battle; a smile which would have usually sent chills running down the spine of anyone who witnessed it. And on the other side was Fengo, who was enduring it effortlessly and matching Kokabiel's wild smile with a grin of his own.

"And what of it?" Kokabiel finally responded. "Is there anything wrong with that? Do you take issue with that piece of information?"

"Actually, no, not at all. If fighting makes you happy then it makes you happy, but are you telling me that you want to continue a war that will lead to the extinction of your people just so you can fight?"

"Absolutely."

"And that's why you're an idiot." Fengo retorted, hearing Kokabiel reply without hesitation.

While Kokabiel twitched at being called an idiot again, several of the other Fallen Angel leaders groaned as they held their faces in their hands at the absurdity of their friend.

"Kokabiel…" Even Azazel had a cramped expression on his face as he looked at his friend.

Meanwhile, Kokabiel appeared completely unapologetic about the trouble he caused for everyone, creating no small amount of consternation for all of them.

"Well it's not as if any of the other battle-maniacs I've met were any different." Fengo commented, rolling his eyes.

"You've met people who were like Kokabiel before, Fengo?" Penemue asked, knowing how much of a pain it was having Kokabiel as a friend and sympathizing with Fengo if that was the case for him as well.

"I've known _worse_." Fengo said, giving Penemue a wry smile. "You all are lucky that this guy here _only_ wants the continuation of a war that will lead to the extinction of your race and two other races."

She, and the other Fallen Angel leaders listening in, stared long and hard at Fengo as his words registered in their minds. Then, as one, they all turned to look at Kokabiel who was taken aback at the intense looks he was receiving. As their imaginations went to work, some of their expressions changed into comic looks of horror.

"Hey." Kokabiel interjected, frowning indignantly at the treatment from his friends.

"Ahem. Moving on, where do we stand now, Kokabiel?" Clearing his throat, Shemhazai brought the conversation back to the main issue at hand. "For the sake of our people and the future of the Fallen Angels, the leaders of the Grigori must present a united front. _All_ of them." He said, looking directly at Kokabiel. "What would it take to do that?"

Kokabiel crossed his arms and gave a simple reply. "I just want to fight."

Shemhazai frowned at his stubborn response and looked to his colleagues for help. None of them, however, had a solution to their problem.

As they thought about what they could do to convince Kokabiel, a cheery voice chimed in from the side.

"The solution is really simple, actually."

The gazes of those in the room gathered back to Fengo who stared directly at Kokabiel as he said that. They were curious about what he was going to propose and, considering his past record of outlandish proposals, were understandably feeling a mixture of anticipation and dread.

However, they never in their wildest dreams could have imagined what was going to happen next.

" _I'll give you a fight._ "

Two things happened in that instant.

The first was that, before Fengo had even finished his sentence, every single one of the Fallen Angel leaders unfurled their wings and scrambled back, flapping their wings frantically as they did so, in an attempt to get as far away from him as possible.

The second thing happened simultaneously with the first, which was that they each materialized their own light weapons. Everything ranging from swords to spears to a bow appeared in their hands—and they were all pointed at Fengo.

Their minds were in turmoil as their thoughts tried to catch up to their instincts and reflexes which automatically moved their bodies. Even now they were fighting the urge to react violently and dangerously. Slowly, however, their mental faculties began returning to them, allowing them to assess the situation more calmly and rationally.

The first thing they noticed was the overwhelming and overpowering sensation that was emanating from Fengo himself. It was similar to the feelings of bloodlust and killing intent that they regularly experienced on the battlefield, but it wasn't quite the same. If they had to describe it, what they were sensing felt more… pure than either of those two feelings. It was like what they were experiencing was just pure _fighting_ intent, if such a thing even existed.

Of course, calling it "pure" would be misleading as that sensation immediately triggered every single one of their finely tuned instincts that had been honed through deadly combat. It caused their hearts to start pounding within their chests and their breathing to quicken, as if they were suddenly placed into the middle of a life-or-battle, and it wasn't going away. It permeated the entire room, filling the air and creating an incredible pressure that bore down on all of them. It was incomprehensible that one moment they were all having a discussion and in the next it felt as if they were in the middle of a battle during the Great War.

And Kokabiel was enjoying every second of it.

It was absolutely amazing! He could feel the smile on his face threatening to split it into two as he basked in the sublime state of being that he was currently feeling. It felt as if he was experiencing every battle he had ever fought all over again. The joy, elation, excitement, fear, restlessness, and nervousness he experienced in each of those battles were coursing through him like an unstoppable flood and he soaked them all in like a sponge.

 _This is why life is worth living!_ Kokabiel crowed in his mind, looking at Fengo's teeth-filled smile which seemed to be pushing for a fight.

 _This is all I want and need!_ He thought, as Fengo's eyes, which looked as if a fire had been lit inside them, matched directly with his own savage gaze.

Tightening his grip on his light swords, he prepared to launch himself straight at Fengo—

"But it will have to wait until later."

Now, unfortunately for Kokabiel, Fengo's statement came at exactly the same time as Kokabiel was about to bolt towards him. The conflicting signals sent from his brain because of this unfortunate event resulted in a loss of balance and coordination across his entire body, ultimately culminating into a straight-forward descent to the ground.

Basically, he fell flat on his face.

"Pfft… Ahahaha!"

As Fengo burst into laughter upon seeing Kokabiel plant his face into the floor, Kokabiel raised himself as he roared angrily at him.

"What do you mean 'later'?!"

Fengo's laugh calmed down into chuckles so that he could reply to him. "Well it's not as if I can fight you right this instant. I have things to do!"

Incidentally, Fengo's amusement did nothing to temper Kokabiel's anger.

"Are you fooling around with me?!"

"No I'm not, I'm being completely serious!" Fengo said, grinning. "I came here to get an idea of how the Fallen Angels are doing and I still have to travel around to the two other factions!"

While Fengo and Kokabiel were going back and forth with each other, the rest of the Fallen Angel leaders were left blinking repeatedly as they numbly stared at Fengo and tried to understand what had just happened. Fengo's fighting intent had disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared and it left them off kilter and bewildered as to how he could change so quickly.

As they looked at Fengo who had a cheerful smile on his face and merriment dancing within his eyes while he bantered with Kokabiel, they wondered if what they had just experienced was a hallucination. The Fengo they were watching right now who was playing around with Kokabiel was the familiar person they knew. But the weapons in their hands and their racing hearts, which were just now calming down, were damning evidence which told them that it really did happen.

"So when are we going to fight then?"

"I'll tell you what, Biel. After I'm done here I'll be moving on to the Angels and Devils next. I'll come back here after that and we'll have our fight then, okay?"

Kokabiel grumbled and frowned when he heard that he was going to have to wait for the fight he wanted.

"Do I have your word?"

"Yeah, I promise." Fengo reassured him.

For some reason, as Kokabiel heard Fengo make his promise, he saw something in Fengo's eyes which convinced him that the promise was going to be kept. He didn't know what to make of the feeling of reliability that he had arbitrarily assigned to Fengo, but he decided to trust in his instincts.

"So will you work together with your friends from now on?"

"Whatever."

"Good enough!" Fengo said happily. "There you have it, everyone. Problem solved."

Azazel was the first to recover and made his way back to the center of the room and the shattered remains of their table. Dissolving the light weapons he had created in his hands, he walked up to Kokabiel and smacked him on the back in a friendly fashion.

"Great! Glad to finally have you on board, Kokabiel."

Kokabiel only grunted and showed an annoyed face when Azazel hit him on the back.

"Now go get another table."

Kokabiel let out another grunt as a magic circle appeared underneath him, teleporting him away.

As Azazel began cleaning up the remains of the shattered table using his magic, Fengo asked him a question after seeing how smoothly the interaction between the two of them went.

"Does he break tables often, Azzy?"

"Well, often enough that we have a room full of spare tables." He said to Fengo, giving him a wry smile.

His statement sent Fengo into another fit of laughter which some of the other leaders watched with amusement as they made their way back to the center of the room.

"Thank you for the help with Kokabiel, Fengo." Azazel said quietly, seriously, as he busied himself with his cleaning task.

Sensing the sincerity in Azazel's voice, Fengo settled down and gave him a small smile.

"No problem, Azzy. That's what I'm here for."

Azazel flashed him a thankful smile as he finished cleaning up the remains of the table and watched as his friends arrived to where they were standing previously.

"Geez, Fengo. Next time give us a little warning before you go all 'Kokabiel' on us, okay?"

Penemue said that jokingly to Fengo once she had regained her composure.

"Sorry about that, Penny. I got a little carried away." He said, smiling apologetically

Everyone looked at him when he said that and thought, _That was only a "little"?_

"Just a 'little', huh?" Penemue said, amazed. "Fufufu, Fengo, you're just as bad as Kokabiel, you know?" She teased, smiling slyly at him.

"Hey now, though sometimes I can be as bad as Kokabiel, there is a big difference between me and him." Fengo responded, pouting at her.

"What's the difference?" She asked, tilting her head out of puzzlement.

"Well, if you told me that I could no longer fight for the rest of my life I'd be relatively okay with that. If you told Kokabiel that he'd probably kill himself."

Penemue and the others mulled over what Fengo said. Would Kokabiel really react like that? They arrived at their answer immediately.

Yes. Yes he would.

"Sure, fighting can be a lot of fun." Fengo continued, shrugging. "But there are a lot of other things that I enjoy doing as well and the same can't really be said about Kokabiel, unfortunately." He said with pity in his voice.

Spotting a chance to learn more about him, Penemue jumped on it. "So what are some of those things?"

"Let's see…" He placed a finger on his chin and began thinking. "I like to cook and eat good food, read, spend time with friends and loved ones, take walks through forests…"

Here, Fengo's voice trailed off. In the middle of listing the activities he enjoyed doing, he began recalling a recent memory from before he had arrived at the Fallen Angel headquarters; from when he was still exploring the Underworld.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Located in a secluded portion of the Underworld was a massive forest. It was populated by massive trees whose canopies covered the skies overhead and blocked most of the light from reaching the forest floor. Glimpses of various animals and monsters could be seen as they threaded their way through the brush and underwood of the forest. Sounds of combat occurring between the highly territorial and dangerous occupants of the forest could be heard all throughout the area as they fought; just another natural part of life in the forest.

Making his way through this incredibly dangerous and isolated forest with a grin on his face was Fengo. As per usual it appeared as if he was talking out loud to himself, but he was of course talking to Cali.

"This forest is amazing! Who would have thought that a place like this existed in this new world?"

[This world is rather odd, though. Its lack of oceans being one of the reasons why.]

"Yeah, that's kind of weird."

[The wildlife is interesting as well.]

Fengo chuckled at that. "Remember the Hydra? She was a lot of fun."

[Or the Undines?] She said in a mischievous tone.

"Umm… Well… They were…"

[Interesting?] She teased.

"Different. They were different."

[Fufufufu.]

Smiling as he listened to her melodious laughter, he tried elaborating on what he had just said.

"It's just that Undines aren't usually that… well-built. They were very polite, though."

[That was only _after_ you wrestled with them.] She said, sounding amused.

"Well that was because I intruded upon their lake. And they were very gracious even after I defeated them." Fengo recalled.

[Hmm. And what about their Queen, Fengo?]

"Err, what about her?" He said cautiously, hearing a change in her tone.

[She was very beautiful, was she not?] She said offhandedly.

Now, Fengo was not an idiot. He realized that he was in a precarious position and that he would have to choose his next words _very_ carefully.

"Yep! She sure was."

[Mwu…]

Fengo couldn't keep the smile off his face as he pictured in his mind the image of Cali pouting adorably.

"But, I just so happen to know another incredible person whose beauty doesn't lose out at all when compared to the Undine Queen." He continued, as if not noticing Cali's reaction. "She has been by my side the longest and she saved my life. She is my friend, my partner, my most beloved, and I love her very, very much."

[Fengo…]

After hearing her demure and bashful voice he could feel a warmth being pressed into his back, as if someone was hugging him.

With a gentle smile on his face he stayed silent in order to bask in the feeling and the two shared a warm moment in the dark forest.

Making his way through the forest in peaceful silence, Fengo eventually happened upon a clearing in the forest.

"Oh, it's pretty nice here—"

—A torrent of blue flames suddenly cascaded down from the sky, engulfing the entire clearing and everything in it, turning the forest into a blazing inferno. It all happened in a split second, completely without warning.

High above the destruction and chaos below was a colossal Dragon. Its blue scales glinted in the dim light of the Underworld and its cold blue eyes coolly surveyed the scene of absolute devastation it had created. A tempest was created with each flap of its massive wings, which allowed it to hover in the air, and just its mere presence was enough to cause a massive commotion as every living being in the surrounding area began to run as far away from the place as possible.

The Dragon let out a snort and prepared to leave, but all of a sudden its eyes widened when—

" _Fengooo. Hey Fengooooo._ "

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Fengoooo."

Fengo blinked as he returned to the present, finding that Penemue was waving her hand in front of her eyes and calling out his name.

"Are you alright, Fengo? You seemed to have left us for a moment there." She asked, concerned.

"Oh, sorry about that, Penny. I was just remembering something. Anyways, there you have it. The difference between me and Kokabiel. At least one of them, anyways." He said with a smile.

While Penemue wondered about what Fengo had recalled just then, Shemhazai asked Fengo a question that had been on his mind after seeing him deal with Kokabiel.

"Are you really going to fight him, Fengo?"

"Of course. I promised him, after all."

Shemhazai frowned. "That is not a good idea. Agreeing to a fight will just encourage him; it will not solve the long-standing issue. Furthermore…"

He trailed off as he saw Fengo smiling widely at him, as if Fengo knew something he didn't.

"…What is it?"

"Aww, are you worried about me, Shemmy?" He said, his eyes twinkling.

As Shemhazai blinked in confusion at Fengo's response, Penemue and Azazel turned towards Shemhazai with wide smiles on their faces as well. Glancing around, he could see the other Fallen Angel leaders looking at him with amusement in their eyes.

"Fufufu, how cute of you, Shem." Penemue giggled, teasing him.

"I am not—"

"But don't worry, Shemmy."

A vein appeared on his forehead and his eye began twitching as he was cut off by Fengo again.

"I'll be fine. We'll fight, I'll beat him up, wait for a few days, then repeat." He cheerfully said. "It will all work out just fine."

Shemhazai opened his mouth to respond when a magic circle materialized in the room. Appearing from it was Kokabiel along with a table.

"What took you so long?" Azazel asked Kokabiel, raising an eyebrow.

Moving the table into place, he responded to Azazel a little irritatedly. "The room where we keep the spare tables was empty, so I had to search around for one."

Azazel rolled his eyes at Kokabiel's moody response while Penemue and Fengo snickered together at his misfortune.

"It's your fault for always breaking them so you only have yourself to blame."

Kokabiel only grumbled discontentedly as he finished moving the table and everyone began picking up the papers that had been scattered by him.

"Since Fengo is here now let's start from the beginning." Azazel told his companions.

As everyone finished cleaning up the room and placing the papers back onto the table, the meeting was restarted with one extra member this time around.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"… and that is the end of my report."

After Tamiel finished his report, Azazel thanked him and then addressed Fengo.

"That's all of it. So what do you think, Fengo?"

As the Fallen Angel leaders gave their reports on the current state of affairs both domestically and with the other factions, Fengo listened attentively, only interrupting occasionally to ask questions.

"Things seem to be going pretty well, actually." Fengo said, pleased. "All fighting between the Three Factions has stopped and you guys are focusing now on your people and on rebuilding. As long as this continues, we should be able to move on to the next step. And after I meet with the other two factions, I'll confirm that their situations are proceeding smoothly as well."

"Great!" Azazel replied happily.

The other Fallen Angel leaders also appeared to be happy with their current situation and it was now up to Fengo to do his part and visit the other factions to check on them as well.

While his Fallen Angel friends began cleaning up their papers, Azazel made his way over to Fengo and slung an arm around his shoulder.

"So now that the boring work is done, what do you say we do something fun?" He proposed with a grin on his face.

"What did you have in mind?" Fengo asked.

"How would you like to have a tour of the place?"

"Oooh, you're going to take Fengo on a tour? I want to come too!" Penemue said excitedly, practically bouncing over to the two of them.

"I would love to have one." Fengo decided. "I'll be in your care." He said, smiling at the two of them.

"Alright! Let's go then!" Penemue eagerly grabbed Fengo's arm after hearing his response and began dragging him to the exit.

Before the three of them could go any further, however, Shemhazai stopped them. "Wait!"

They turned their heads to look at him and Penemue appeared to be slightly annoyed at being obstructed from having her fun.

"What is it?" Azazel asked him.

"You cannot just shirk your duties. The two of you still have a lot of work to do." Shemhazai protested.

Azazel, Fengo, and Penemue responded simultaneously to his objection

""I can just do it later."" "They can just do it later."

Right after the words left their mouths, the three of them turned to each other with smiles on their faces.

"Great minds think alike." Azazel said cheerfully

"Idiots tend to have the same thought processes as well." Shemhazai's voice was flat and unimpressed.

"Pfft." Fengo let out a snort of amusement while a tick mark appeared on Azazel's forehead.

"Well it just so happens that this idiot is your boss and I'm telling you to hold down the fort while we show our new friend around."

"Yeah, come on, Fengo." Penemue said smiling brightly at him. "Let's leave these bores and have some fun!"

And with that the three of them left the room, leaving the rest of the Fallen Angel leaders to think over everything that had happened since Fengo had arrived.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"The building we're in right now is the main headquarters of the Grigori and the Fallen Angels."

Azazel began explaining to Fengo as he and Penemue led him around. They were currently walking down a long hallway and occasionally passed by other Fallen Angels who sent glances towards the group.

"It was also the first institute we established in the Underworld when the first of the Grigori were kicked out of Heaven. And since all of us were researchers, this institute was established as a research center. Since then other institutes have been set up as well."

Fengo, who was nodding along as he listened to Azazel, interrupted to ask him a question.

"Wait, you're all researchers?"

"Yep." Azazel glanced over at Fengo. "Is that such a surprise?"

"Well, yeah!"

"Hmph!" Azazel pouted when Fengo answered immediately and looked away causing Penemue to giggle at him.

"Fufufu, so what was your impression of him then, Fengo?" She asked curiously.

"To be honest with you, Azzy seems like the type of guy who chases after women a lot."

"Well, you're not wrong." Penemue said, giving Azazel a wry smile when he gave her a look of betrayal. "But he wasn't lying about the research part."

"Ohh, really? So are you doing any research right now, Penny?"

"Actually, I didn't take part in any research. Instead, I was something like a manager who looked after all of them."

Fengo gave Azazel a look before replying to her. "I'm sorry, that must have been hard on you."

"Ara, finally somebody who understands the ordeals I've been through."

"No respect… I get no respect…" Azazel was moping by himself off to the side as the other two tore him apart.

Sharing a chuckle at his expense, Fengo and Penemue continued to follow Azazel as he proceeded with the tour.

Engaging in small talk as they made their way through the institute, Azazel stopped when he arrived at a certain door.

"So why are we stopping here?" Fengo asked.

Azazel had a smug and eager look on his face as he answered him. "Since you seemed to harbor some doubts about me being a researcher I wanted to show you my personal lab."

After saying that he placed his hand on the door and Fengo watched as multiple magic circles sprung up around it. They faded after a few seconds passed and Azazel then turned the handle of the door, opening it.

"Welcome to my lab. Come on in."

Walking through the door, Fengo looked around animatedly with an amazed expression on his face.

"It's like the lab of a mad scientist."

"Is there something wrong with being a mad scientist?" Azazel asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course not." Fengo replied with a grin. "If you're a scientist and you're not at least a little mad, then you're doing it wrong."

Azazel's lab was a cavernous space that was filled to the brim with an assortment of items. Various scientific tools were set up all over the room and some of them seemed to be running. Pieces of paper were strewn about on the tables that were in the lab, along with other objects that Fengo could not immediately identify.

"But still, you really weren't kidding."

Giggling, Penemue who was standing in the middle of the room asked, "You were still skeptical, Fengo?"

"I believed him once you confirmed it as well, Penny." He responded. "But I thought he was researching, like, lovemaking techniques or something like that."

Azazel sweat dropped upon hearing Fengo's response.

"I feel like your image of me is kind of messed up."

"So what do you actually research, Azzy?" Fengo was looking interestedly at the various instruments and experiments that were in the lab as he asked his question.

"You're going to ignore what I just said, huh?" Azazel wryly commented, while Penemue once again giggled at Fengo's antics. "Anyways, my topic of research is on Sacred Gears." He said excitedly.

Fengo shifted his sight to Azazel and tilted his head.

"Sacred Gears?"

"Yeah. Sacred Gears are basically powers and abilities that Dad created to help humans and they come in a variety of shapes and forms."

"Dad?"

"He's the leader of the Angel Faction and you saw him last time when we were all on that battlefield together. The Biblical God?"

"Oh right, the glowy guy."

Azazel and Penemue shared a chuckle at the casual attitude Fengo took towards the Biblical God.

"Yeah, him."

"So what kind of powers and abilities are we talking about here?"

"There are all kinds!" Azazel's eyes began shining as he passionately explained to Fengo. "There are simple Sacred Gears like Twice Critical which doubles the user's power and then there are others with amazing potential, like Sword Birth, which can create an assortment of different swords. But perhaps the most interesting of the Sacred Gears are the Longinus."

"And what are those?"

"The Longinus are unique Sacred Gears and they are the most powerful; each of them granting their users the potential to slay gods." Azazel explained proudly.

Fengo let out an impressed whistle.

"Wow. Sacred Gears seem to be pretty amazing."

"Right, right." Azazel agreed, nodding along happily to Fengo.

"And so how are they distributed?"

"It's completely random—"

"Wait, wait, wait." Fengo interrupted. "Can you please repeat that?"

Azazel blinked.

"Umm, as far as I can tell, Sacred Gears are bestowed randomly among the human race."

Fengo stared blankly at him for a second before looking up at the ceiling.

Rubbing the bridge of his nose in exasperation he said, "I thought that your dad was kind of an idiot when I first met him, but now I know that he's _definitely_ an idiot."

Azazel and Penemue looked at each other with the same wide grins on their face after witnessing Fengo's reaction.

"You know, it's rather refreshing hearing you talk about Dad like that. Most humans would be falling onto their knees and worshipping him by now." Penemue remarked.

"I guess that means that I'm not like most humans, then." Fengo replied offhandedly, his gaze still on the ceiling.

"You could say that again." Penemue chirped back.

There was a moment of silence afterwards where Fengo continued to look at the ceiling while Azazel and Penemue watched him amusedly.

"Is that really the way it works, Azzy?" Fengo eventually spoke up. "Sacred Gears with the potential to kill gods are just arbitrarily handed out to random humans?" He asked Azazel in complete monotone.

"Dad created those Sacred Gears with the purpose of giving humanity a defense against elements of the supernatural that wanted to exploit them." Azazel reasoned in a neutral tone.

Fengo looked back down from the ceiling and into Azazel's eyes.

"Yeah, sure." Fengo scoffed. "But for every human who uses their Sacred Gear to protect, how many others will use it for selfish or idiotic reasons?"

"Aren't you a human yourself, Fengo?" Azazel pointed out.

"Yes, I am." Fengo stated plainly.

After another brief moment of silence Fengo spoke up again. "You know what? It doesn't even matter. I don't really care about it either way, so whatever." He said, shaking his head. "Anyways, how has your research been going, Azzy? What does it actually consist of?"

Azazel and Penemue were a bit nonplussed at how fast Fengo seemed to drop his issue with Sacred Gears and move on.

"Ah, it's been going well." Azazel told him. "And I've been doing a lot of things with Sacred Gears. One of them has been cataloging all of the different kinds of them; finding out what their abilities are, naming them, that sort of thing."

Seeing Fengo listen so attentively to him and having a genuine interest in his passion brought about good feelings within him, spurring him to continue onwards.

"After researching them for some time I've even been able to create my own Sacred Gears."

"Oooh, really?"

"Yep, yep." Azazel said, nodding proudly. "I call them Artificial Sacred Gears. I think I have some here in the lab that I can show you…

"Hey, hey, Azazel." Penemue cut in. "Show him _that_." She said with a massive grin on her face.

Azazel's face immediately stiffened which instantly caught Fengo's attention.

"Show me what?"

"It's nothing—"

"It was one of the first Artificial Sacred Gears that Azazel created." Penemue interrupted, still grinning like a madwoman.

"That sounds interesting. Do you still have it, Azzy?"

"Well—" Azazel was about to say something when he stopped and sighed in resignation.

"I'll bring it to you." He said reluctantly, trudging off further into his lab and grumbling under his breath the entire way.

"What's with him?" Fengo asked.

"Fufufu, just wait and see, Fengo. You'll definitely get a kick out of it." She finished mysteriously.

Fengo raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything else.

Not much time passed before Azazel returned, this time with an object in his hands.

From what Fengo could see, it looked like a sword. As he observed it more carefully he could perceive two distinct auras emanating from it.

"Here it is." Azazel said uncharacteristically without fanfare, handing over the sword to Fengo.

Taking it from him, Fengo took the chance to examine it more carefully. But even then, Fengo concluded that it was just a sword that seemed to possess an aura that was a mixture of light and darkness. Deciding to test out the blade, he took a few steps away from Azazel and Penemue and began casually swinging it.

However, for Azazel and Penemue, it looked anything but casual as they watched transfixed to the mesmerizing and beautiful sight of Fengo's swordplay. It was so swift and fluid that there were no stops or breaks in his swings; the sword twirled and weaved itself around both of his hands and each strike and swipe chained with one another to create a seamless performance that looked fantastic.

The two of them were abruptly brought out of their spellbound state when Fengo ended his test and made his way back towards them, returning the sword to Azazel.

"It's a pretty nice sword, Azzy." He said with a smile.

"Uhh, thanks." Azazel mumbled, still a little bit out of it as a result of what he had just witnessed.

Taking his Artificial Sacred Gear back, Azazel found himself, once again, wondering about the human in front of him who called himself Fengo.

"Wow! That was amazing, Fengo!" Penemue exclaimed, bounding over to Fengo excitedly.

"Oh, thank you." Fengo replied with a carefree smile.

Looking over at Azazel, Fengo asked Penemue a question. "So what was the big deal, Penny? The Artificial Sacred Gear seemed fine to me."

"Oh, right!" She said in realization. "You haven't told Fengo what you named it, yet, Azazel."

There was an expression of the utmost of innocence on Penemue's face as she said this which confused Fengo and ticked off Azazel.

Glaring daggers at Penemue—who he _knew_ was laughing her butt off on the inside—he decided to just bite the bullet and say it.

"Blazer *mumble* *mumble* *mumble* *mumble*…"

"Can you please speak up, Azazel? I don't think that Fengo heard you."

"It's called Blazer Shining Aura Darkness Blade!" Azazel shouted, agonizing pain resonating deep down within his soul.

In the silence that followed Azazel's proclamation, a grin tugged at Fengo's lips as he mulled over that… imaginative… name.

"Well… At least it just rolls off the tongue, eh, Azzy?"

"Pfft—Ahahaha!"

Azazel willed Penemue to burn with his eyes as she doubled over in laughter, leaning over on Fengo for support so that she wouldn't fall onto the ground.

"I hate you."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Come on, Azzy. Are you still angry about that?"

Fengo called out to Azazel who was walking ahead of him and Penemue.

Stopping, Azazel turned back, allowing Fengo to see that he had his arms crossed and his lower lip stuck out in a petulant pout. With a huff he turned his head away and continued walking.

"I'll take that as a yes." Fengo said, smiling wryly.

"Don't worry about him, Fengo. He'll get over it eventually." Penemue said casually from beside him.

"If you say so Penny."

The three of them had made their way out of Azazel's lab and were currently outside of the main institute that was the Grigori headquarters.

They were walking along a main street that was flanked on both sides by beautiful residential buildings. Sometimes they would pass by other Fallen Angels going about their day that would stop and greet Azazel and Penemue while sending curious and interested gazes towards Fengo who was with them.

"Anyways, where was I?" Penemue wondered.

"You were explaining to me how the first Fallen Angel city was established." Fengo reminded her.

"Oh, right. As you already know, the first Fallen Angels were the original members of the Grigori and they were all researchers so they were fine with living in the research institutes they set up. However, as more and more Angels fell, a new living space was needed to house all of them because a few research institutes set up by those research bores weren't going to cut it. So a city plan was developed around the main headquarters, the main institute. Over time, the city just grew and grew outwards while still having the institute in the center and that was how the first Fallen Angel city, Primus City, was born. And ever since, Primus City became the model for all of our cities."

Fengo's eyes were constantly taking in the city as he listened to Penemue's explanation, looking this way and that, taking in even the smallest of details.

"It's a beautiful city." Fengo commented.

"It is, isn't it?" Azazel consented, having once again made his way back to Fengo's side.

"Oh, have you finally stopped sulking?"

"I wasn't sulking, Penemue!" Azazel cried indignantly.

However, there was another thing that Fengo noticed as they walking around the city.

"The city seems kind of empty, though."

Fengo's words brought on a heavy silence that he waited for them to break.

"The Three Factions truly were on the brink of extinction. We Fallen Angels in particular were, at most, only a century away from annihilation."

It was impossible to miss the misery and helplessness permeating Azazel's voice as he admitted to that bleak reality.

"None of us had a way out of that hopeless situation." Penemue murmured sadly. "But then, out of nowhere, you showed up, Fengo." She said brightly, presenting Fengo a lovely smile. "We still have no idea how you managed to do what you did that day, but we will be forever grateful to you for doing it."

"Don't mention it, Penny." He replied nonchalantly, a carefree smile on his face.

A frown marred Penemue's beautiful features upon hearing Fengo's casual response to such a monumental accomplishment.

"I think you're underestimating just exactly what you achieved that day, Fengo!" She protested. "What you did will forever go down as one of the defining moments in all of our histories! Please recognize that!"

While Fengo seemed taken aback at how much emotion Penemue directed towards him, Azazel was surprised by the passion that she exhibited. Although Penemue was the most carefree person he knew, she was also notorious for rarely ever showing the kind of passion or interest she was displaying at the moment. He could also understand it, however, as even he felt slightly frustrated at how little Fengo seemed to think of what he did.

Collecting himself, Fengo gave Penemue a sincere, heartfelt smile that brought some color to her cheeks, an observation that interested Azazel greatly.

"Thank you, Penny." He said warmly. "But like I said before, I only presented the opportunity for all of you to end the Great War yourselves."

The smile that had been on Penemue's face when Fengo thanked her quickly changed to her pouting with puffed out cheeks, a sight Fengo found to adorable.

"This isn't the first time I've done something like this, you know." Fengo revealed, bringing surprise to both Penemue and Azazel's faces. "And sometimes people are just unwilling to make peace. Instead, they would rather fight until their people are, quite literally, all dead."

Penemue and Azazel could not imagine the mindset required to go through with something like that.

"And if they want to fight, then that's fine as well. I won't stand in their way." He said indifferently with a shrug.

Both Penemue and Azazel paled when they realized how close the Three Factions actually came to mutual destruction. If anything had gone differently, if they had continued to fight and Fengo had left them to do so, they would be in a completely different situation right now

Stopping in place, Fengo looked directly in the eyes of Penemue and Azazel as he delivered his next statement, giving them a glimpse into the man before them.

"But regardless of what _could_ have happened, just remember that it was all of you who decided to end the war. Remember that you decided that peace was preferable to war. And remember that this peace belongs to _you_."

Fengo smiled brilliantly.

"So don't be afraid to give yourselves some credit."

Both Penemue and Azazel were captivated as Fengo's words resonated within their minds. Penemue opened her mouth to respond—

"Greetings, Governor Azazel, Lady Penemue."

—but before she could, another voice entered the conversation.

Three pairs of eyes fell onto the owner of that voice as he approached them. With handsome features typical for a Fallen Angel, he confidently walked up to Penemue and Azazel, brushing past Fengo without even sparing him a glance.

"Hey." Azazel lightly returned his greeting while Penemue remained silent.

"What brings you out today?"

"We just wanted to take a look around the city, see how things were going."

"I see. Hopefully you've seen that everything is going well." He said, giving Azazel his best flattering smile.

That smile vanished as he turned to look at Fengo with dismissive eyes and an unconcerned expression on his face.

"And may I ask who you have brought with you?"

"This is Fengo."

The instant he heard the name, a contemptuous and disdainful expression replaced the one he had before as he directed it all towards Fengo.

"Ah, so this is the rumored 'Fengo'."

"Nice to meet—"

"Silence!" The Fallen Angel roared, furiously and hatefully. "A filthy _human_ like you is only allowed to speak when spoken to!"

This attracted a lot of attention as other Fallen Angels in their surroundings, who had already been paying attention to the group, heard what was said and directed their full attention towards the developing situation. They soon began to whisper to each other and steal glances at Fengo as they quickly identified the human who had supposedly stopped the Great War.

Fengo blinked as an oppressive silence descended upon the group.

"Alrighty then."

After saying that he stuck his hands into the pockets of his coat and turned his head to look around at the architecture of the surrounding buildings. He was particularly interested in their designs and took the opportunity to observe them more carefully.

Meanwhile, Azazel and Penemue's expressions turned stony after seeing the way Fengo was treated.

The Fallen Angel's silky countenance returned as he addressed his leaders. "I apologize for my outburst. The human needed to be reminded of where he stood amongst his superiors and I was glad to oblige."

Azazel and Penemue didn't respond and opted to continue staring icily at the man. And whether it was because the Fallen Angel was an idiot or because he was too self-conceited, he interpreted the looks he was receiving as those of approval.

"May I inquire as to why a miserable human is in the presence of greater beings such as you?"

"He was here to confirm the details regarding the end of the Great War." Penemue said emotionlessly.

The Fallen Angel frowned upon hearing her answer.

"Please say it isn't so. Was the declaration of peace simply not a ploy in order to deliver a devastating blow to our enemies?"

"It was not." Azazel said coolly.

"… Then, the rumors that the human stopped the Great War are true…?" He uttered incredulously. "That's impossible! We are the dominant race and we were on the verge of winning!" Familiar words left his frenzied mouth. "No! I refuse to believe that a weak and pathetic human could possibly have done anything of the sort!"

"Then you should duel him yourself and discover if the rumors were true or not." Penemue suggested frigidly with a clear purpose in mind.

"Ah, that's an excellent idea, Lady Penemue! I will crush the human and affirm the superiority of Fallen Angels!" He declared excitedly.

His excitement quickly turned to confusion, however, as he turned to challenge Fengo, only to find him missing.

His confusion was shared with Penemue and Azazel as they too were surprised that he was nowhere to be seen.

Looking this way and that, a smile appeared on Penemue's face and she began to giggle as her eyes landed on an amusing spectacle. She had found Fengo, who had somehow slipped away from them, standing close to a nearby building and peering intently at the patterns and designs on it. He seemed to be genuinely interested and engrossed in what he was doing.

Noticing Penemue's giggles and following her gaze, Azazel also spotted Fengo and called out to him with a grin. "Hey, Fengo!"

"Yeah?" Fengo called back.

"Do you want to fight?"

"Sure." Fengo said with a lazy smile, walking back to them.

"So who am I fighting?"

"Isn't that something you should ask _before_ you accept a fight, Fengo?" Penemue teased him, smiling mischievously.

"Yeah, probably." Fengo agreed with a grin of his own.

"You will have the honor of being crushed by me, human." The Fallen Angel said, stepping in with an arrogant smile on his face.

"Oh. Cool." Fengo responded simply. "Will we be doing it right here in the street?"

"I'll set up a barrier." Azazel volunteered.

"Thank you, Governor Azazel." The Fallen Angel said, bowing.

"Yeah, thanks, Azzy."

The Fallen Angel directed a murderous gaze at Fengo after hearing how casually he spoke to Azazel but decided to hold it in. His anger would dissipate after watching Fengo bleed out and die in the streets, anyway.

As the two of them moved into position, the crowd of Fallen Angels who had been watching the entire thing hastily moved out of their way and into a better location to watch. If the excited murmurs and whispers were anything to go by, they were looking forward to the match.

Once the two of them made it to their positions Azazel stepped up. Holding out his hand, a large magic circle appeared beneath them, engulfing an area that was plenty large enough to fight. Soon after, a barrier began to form starting from the magic circle, eventually forming a dome around the two.

Fengo, who was immediately fascinated by the barrier, instantly turned his back on his opponent and began observing the barrier curiously.

"What an interesting barrier. It looks sturdy, solid, durable..."

Every other Fallen Angel sweat dropped upon seeing this. The only Fallen Angel who didn't was the one who was facing Fengo and he was enraged at the apparent disrespect he was showing him.

But seeing a chance, the Fallen Angel without delay seized on it, creating multiple spears of light and sending them tearing through the air towards Fengo's exposed back.

He smiled viciously as they approached closer and closer to Fengo without him even noticing and almost all of the Fallen Angels there, him included, believed that the fight was already over.

They were proven wrong and utterly shocked when Fengo stepped to the side like it was so natural and completely evaded the light spears. Fengo hadn't even turned around from observing the barrier when he did so, adding to the shock value.

Fengo eventually did turn around to see his Fallen Angel opponent trembling in fury and glaring at him with bloodshot eyes.

"How dare a shitty human like you disrespect me?! I am a powerful, high-class Fallen Angel with three pairs of wings and I will destroy you!" He roared, emphasizing his point by causing his three pairs of wings to burst from his back and taking to the skies.

Fengo wasn't really paying attention to that, though, as he was more intent on asking Azazel and Penemue a question.

"Is that a lot?"

Azazel and Penemue looked at each other before shrugging.

"Kind of."

"Sorta."

Fengo's opponent felt that right in a man's two most sensitive places: his dignity and his pride.

"Well anyways, sorry for ignoring you. Let's get this thing started, yeah?" Fengo declared with a challenging grin.

Apparently not noticing the fact that the battle had already started the moment his opponent decided to attack him.

To call what happened next a "fight" would be rather misleading. For the next several minutes Fengo's Fallen Angel opponent furiously attacked him, sending hundreds, thousands, of light spears at him. It was a futile effort, however, as Fengo easily and effortlessly dodged all of them while interspersing a few meaningless comments here and there, like "That was close~" and "You almost got me there". And to top the entire thing off, Fengo's hands _still_ had not left his coat pockets from when he had originally put them in there.

After some more time had passed, Fengo's opponent was back on the ground and he was panting heavily as a result of tiring himself too quickly during the fight.

Fengo, on the other hand, was standing there with his hands in his pockets as if nothing had happened at all.

As he looked at his exhausted opponent in front of him, Fengo tilted his head and asked him an innocent question. "Is that all you've got?"

The response he received was a single light spear launched at him which Fengo dodged by shifting his head to the side a little and which seemed to be the last move that his opponent could muster.

"Hm. Well, since you showed me something interesting, let me show you a trick of my own." Fengo offered, putting his opponent on guard for whatever would come next.

Fengo finally took his hands out of his pockets and spread his arms out wide, attracting even more attention from the surrounding spectators as they wondered what he show them.

Fengo smiled mischievously.

"Now you see me."

Then disappeared.

The Fallen Angel he was facing only had enough time to widen his eyes before Fengo reappeared in front of him and flicked him on the forehead. The Fallen Angel's head snapped back forcefully as his eyes rolled into the back of his head, and Fengo watched as he slowly fell backwards like a chopped tree.

"And now you don't."

As Azazel's barrier began breaking down, Fengo made his way back to them unconcerned by the gazes he was being bathed in from the spectating Fallen Angels. Although they ranged from shock to awe and to fear, Fengo was undisturbed as evidenced by the happy smile on his face.

"Well. That was fun."

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Penemue's cheeks were puffed out once again—a sight which Fengo still found to be adorable—while she and Azazel were once again walking with Fengo, flanking his sides.

"You should have just killed him, Fengo."

Fengo directed a wry smile at her.

"Well, there really wasn't a need to do so, you bloodthirsty woman."

"I am not bloodthirsty." She declared with a huff and a turn of her head away.

Fengo rolled his eyes and grinned.

Azazel glanced over at Fengo before facing forwards again.

"I'm sorry for what happened back there, Fengo."

"Eh, don't worry about it, Azzy."

Azazel looked back towards Fengo, raising an eyebrow.

"You're not angry? Or annoyed? Or sad? Or anything?"

"No, not really."

Azazel and Penemue looked at Fengo incredulously, trying to detect any signs that would have indicated that Fengo was merely being tough or hiding it… but couldn't find any.

"Why not?"

This time it was Fengo's turn to look at Azazel with a raised eyebrow.

"Why not? I just do not care about people like him or their interactions with me."

"Oh. Okay, then."

There was something odd about his answer, slightly confusing them, but they decided to accept it for now.

As the three of them continued to make their way through the city, introducing to Fengo all the sights and places, they happened across a small family. It consisted of a man, a woman, and what was presumably their young daughter who was in between them and holding their hands. The young girl, who looked to be around five years of age, was happily skipping along, swinging her arms back and forth, while her parents looked at her with gentle smiles.

"Mommy, Daddy, is the Gweat War really over?"

Her parents shared a small laugh at her mispronunciation of the word but quickly stifled it upon seeing the puffed up cheeks of their annoyed daughter.

"Yes, sweetie. It's over."

"Really?" She asked, looking up at them with big, round eyes.

"Yes, really. Mommy and Daddy won't have to fight to protect you anymore and now, Mommy and Daddy will be able to spend allll~ of their time with you."

"Yay!"

The parents' smiles widened upon hearing the joyful laughter of their daughter and as they walked onwards their steps were a bit lighter and their arms swung a little farther.

The three who had quietly observed this scene remained silent.

"Azazel, Penemue." Fengo called them quietly, breaking the silence.

Hearing themselves being addressed by their actual names and not by the nicknames that Fengo gave them instantly seized their attention.

"Do you regret ending the Great War? Do you regret working towards peace between the Three Factions?"

They thought over their answer carefully, even though they didn't need to.

""No.""

Fengo smiled.

"Good."

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 **And thus ends the second chapter. Sorry it took so long, completely my fault on account of the fact that I am a terrible writer. So anyways, I was looking through the traffic stats on the story and I was just amazed at the many, MANY different countries people have read it from. United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Mexico, Germany, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Italy, Philippines, Indonesia, Brazil, Japan, Finland, Bahrain, Peru, Poland, Ireland, Hungary, Russian Federation, Sweden, Turkey, Portugal, Austria, Slovakia, Israel, Greece, Vietnam, Belgium, Europe, Colombia, Chile, Grenada; literally all over the world. So. Cool.**

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 **Featured Review of the Chapter:**

" **For your first story it is really well done. I don't think I've read a story with this premise before and I'm really looking forward to where you take it. I really hope that you keep going with your writing. Hope to read more soon." - Ronin Katarn**

 **Thank you for the compliment. A unique premise was one of the things I was going for when deciding to write this story and I've always found that a lot of the great stories on have one. For me, personally, it's always a lot of fun to read something new which hasn't been done before and I wrote this story with that in mind. Finally, I hope that I will deliver on your expectations.**

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 _ **Darkconvoy99:**_

 **Q1) Will Fengo eventually visit other groups such as the Youkai, Vampires, Greeks, Shinto and Norse in the future?**

 **A: He will definitely visit Earth eventually. But I still don't know if I want to actually write out the various things that will happen or just keep it off-screen with references to them later on.**

 **Q2) Will there be anyone paired with Fengo? If yes, who will it be (Be it single or harem)?**

 **A: I am a fan of romance and I think that it can make a great addition to many stories, including this one, which is all I want to say for now.**

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 **I want to say thank you to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed, it's a lot of fun reading them. I really appreciate it and it makes me happy to know that other people are enjoying the story as well.**

 **And thanks for reading :)**


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